


Semi Automagical

by LordKraus



Series: Wilde Files [2]
Category: Zootopia (2016)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Urban Fantasy, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Nick Wilde is a Wizard
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-29
Updated: 2020-03-20
Packaged: 2021-02-26 02:54:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 11
Words: 49,748
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21566449
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LordKraus/pseuds/LordKraus
Summary: The continuation of Wilde Files.Picking up directly after the events of Demon's Reach can Nick and Judy survive in an ever darkening world?
Relationships: Judy Hopps & Nick Wilde, Judy Hopps/Nick Wilde
Series: Wilde Files [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1466503
Comments: 122
Kudos: 209





	1. Prologue

# Prologue

You’re back. I guess the story of the Missing Mammal Massacre sold a lot of subscriptions to your blog or whatever it is you write for. Carrots didn’t get  too upset with me for telling what happened. Yes I know there are still questions lingering about that case, and while I have my suspicions, I've been told that I  can’t comment about ongoing investigations. No that is not cover up for not knowing what the hell is going on!

The Arcane? Really?  You write for that trash? Well I guess they can get something right every so often. You are changing my name as agreed, right? I mean, I wouldn’t want any of this to fall back on Carrots or myself.

I will say that having a steady paycheck is a pretty sweet gig. The hours kinda suck sometimes but can't win them all, right? Of course I'm right. But having a steady paycheck means also having consistent meals, which is nice. My hot water is still working, much to my surprise. I honestly think Karma is rewarding me with that bit of comfort; or maybe it's for my lapine roommates? Either way I’m not questioning it. Just like I’m trying not to look too much into why they are still there  instead of staying in the literal lap of luxury. 

What's it like being ZPD’s on staff wizard? Well I have been informed by Mammal Resources that Hawaiian shirts are not considered professional attire.  Plebeians .  At least they didn’t try to tell me my staff wasn’t needed equipment, I mean who are they to tell me what I do and don’t need to cast a spell? What could they possibly know about magic? Nothing that's what! On the bright side, Bogo seems content to let me bill them for my expenses on spells. I’m sure the mammals down in accounting  are having a field day with receipts for table salt and calk from the dollar store. 

Judy is back to being my personal demon in a whole new way: exercise. While I'm not being held to the officer fitness guidelines she seems hell bent on making me able to pass their fitness test anyway. I’m not  really complaining though, as it does let us spend a bit more time together,  along with other fringe benefits. 

Sorry, I know I'm rambling a bit; it's just this last case was a mess in more ways than one.  And just when I thought it couldn’t get any worse,  it did . It just goes to show there is no problem so bad that you can’t make it worse.

Oh, you want to know how the dinner date went? Well I guess that's as good of a place as any to start. 


	2. Chapter 1

# Chapter 1

I exit the sports bar just down the street from Horizons Education Center. I check the time on my ZPD issued pager and smile as I am still early. I feel as if my meeting with that reporter went well and I have a bit of extra cash in my pocket to tide me over until payday. It took Carrots and I a bit of doing to get a bank account set up for me, as I have mostly up till this point dealt in cash. But the city wouldn't pay me until they  could do something called a direct deposit. The irony is not lost on me that I now have this little plastic card that will give me access to my money from a machine that I cannot use.

I look down at the six red tulips in my paw. The plastic crinkles just a bit in my paw. Deciding on a number to give her had been one of the hardest decisions  I’d made in a while.  On one paw I didn’t want to come off as desperate, and on the other I didn’t want to come off as cheap; in the end I settled on  an even half dozen. 

I look both ways before I cross the street and lean against the wall outside of the daycare. I don't have long to wait until I hear the familiar high pitched yell of, “Mr. Nick!” as Cotton  comes running out of HEC. I smile at the young rabbit as she skids to a stop instead of leaping at me. 

“ Look Mama!”  she shouts excitedly . “Look, Mr Nick got you flowers!” 

“ How do you know  they’re for your mother?” I ask.

“ Because they are red tulips and they are Mama's favoritest flower ever!” 

I look from the young bunny to the older rabbit in question. She has paused some feet away from me, her eyes locked on the flowers as  her nose twitches rapidly. Her ears twitch, seemingly confused  as to whether they  should fall down her back or stand up right.

“ You ok there Fluff?” 

She looks from the flowers up at me. “How did you know?” 

I grin slyly and shoot her a wink as I say. “Magic.” I mean, would she believe me if I told her Serendipity told me in dream, vision thing? Probably not; best to keep that to myself for now. 

I paw the flowers over to her and smile as she looks at them with a smile on her face. “Thank you.” She looks up at me thoughtfully, then back down at the flowers in her paws. Then, much to my surprise, she takes one of the buds into her mouth and bites it off clean at the stem. The meaning of of this action is completely lost on me; the only rabbits I know are the two in front of me and it’s not like I can ask them. But there’s definitely something to the gesture that I'm not fully aware of… Maybe it has something to do with the fact that I’ve put my tail on the line for her?

“ Oooooh,” Cotton says as she watches her mother and then looks up at me and takes my paw. 

Judy smiles at me. “Come on Slick let’s go to dinner.” She pauses and asks, “Where are we going?”

“Lucerio's.”

She raises an eyebrow at me but doesn’t ask how I got a reservation for the place. I suspect she already knows that Mrs. Otterton had her paw in it, but still. Thankfully we walk as downtown at this time of day is  generally  gridlocked. 

The foot traffic, on the other paw, is rather light and we make good time to the famous Lucerio's. We stand just outside the gleaming edifice with its multitude of delicious smells, seeming like a temple to culinary delights. 

“Can I have fried zucchini  Mama?” Cotton asks before we even get in through the door. 

Judy chuckles. “They have  a lot of good food here Cotton, but if  all you want is fried zucchini then I don't see why not,”  she answers as I pull open the door for the pair. 

I hear a, “Whoa,” from Cotton just before I step into the restaurant. ‘Whoa’ was right as well. The decor of the place is top notch. With gleaming polished floors and brass or gold accents everywhere it felt like we’d set foot into a billionaire's mansion. The wait staff is immaculately dressed in suits and ties, making me suddenly feel very under dressed in khakis and a green Hawaiian shirt. Definitely no ball pits and slides in this place. 

The head waiter standing behind a podium is a male lynx. His tan and black fur  are  immaculately groomed and his whiskers are impossibly straight. His black suit is tailored to him with extreme precision and his stark white shirt offset a blood red tie. He raises an eyebrow as he looks down his nose at us. “I do hope you have reservations…”  he starts, his contempt for us or maybe just me barely hidden in his voice.

“ We do, under Wilde.” I tell him.

“ Wilde?”  he asks as he looks down  at his list. “Oh… OH.” He looks back up at us and smiles sheepishly. “Sorry for my rudeness; right this way  sir and  madams .” I notice a very distinct change in the mammals attitude  after he  found our reservation; I wonder if the reservation being tied to Mrs. Otterton has anything to do with it? 

I follow behind the pair of rabbits. Judy’s ears are upright and the right one has a minor twitch in it. We are  led to what I can only assume is one of the best tables in the place. It’s at the windows and overlooks a fountain that is adjacent to some of the high end  stores in the area. 

He pulls out the chairs for Judy and Cotton then pushes them in slightly after  they’d sat down. I seat myself and smile at my table mates. 

I watch as Judy folded her paws in her lap as the lynx places menus in front of us. “Tonight's herbivore special is vegetarian lasagna with a steamed vegetable  medley, and for carnivores we have a filet of salmon with rice and mixed vegetables.” He smiles at us. “Can I take your drink orders?” 

“ Can I have carrot juice?” Cotton asks.

Judy nods. “I’ll have water for now.”

“ I’ll have water as well,” I answer.

“ How was school today?” Judy asks after the waiter  leaves and opens her menu.

“ It was good,” Cotton  says .

“ I had school today as well,” I say, and Cotton looks up at me.

“ Really?” 

“ Mhmmm; your mom grilled me on crime scene procedures.”

“ I wouldn’t have had to grill you so hard if  you’d have been paying attention,” Judy says shooting me a look from her menu.

I grin slyly at her. What can I say, she’s still kinda cute when she’s a little mad. “Well at least I have a good tutor.” 

She beams at me and then looks down to her menu. “I think the vegetable lasagna sounds good.”

“ I still want fried zucchini.” Cotton  says . 

“ What do you want as your side?” Judy asks as she looks up from her menu. “How about some buttered broccoli?”

“ What about carrot sticks?” Cotton asks hopefully.

Judy looks at her daughter and sighs. “Ok you can have fried zucchini and carrot sticks, but you know how I feel about you having  too many of those.” 

“ Yay!” Cotton cheers. “What do you want Mr. Nick?”

I look down at my menu; all of it is mouth watering. I glance up at my dinner mates and then back down at my menu. Fish and chicken seem like safe options, I would love to try some of the beef as this is the place it was first introduced, but I don't want to offend them. “I think I'll have the wine braised salmon.”

Judy smirks at me. “Nick, if you want beef you can have it. We don’t mind.”

Cotton nods in agreement.

My ears lay flat against my skull so she doesn't see how red the inner portions of become.“How…” I start.

“ If you eye that portion of the menu any harder,  I’ll have to take you in for assault,”  she quips.

I huff and close the menu. “Nothing gets past you does it Officer Hopps?”

“ Nope.” She smiles playfully at me. “And don't you forget that.”

“ Fine then, I’ll have the six ounce rib-eye with a baked potato and mixed vegetables.”

“ Good,” Judy says,  closing her menu just as the waiter brought back our drinks.

“ One carrot juice for the little miss, and one water for the  madam and  sir, ” The lynx  says as he places our drinks in front of us. “Now, are you ready to order or do you need a few minutes?”

“ I want fried zucchini and carrot sticks!” Cotton  says excitedly; I smirk and chuckle a bit at her eagerness. 

Judy  shakes her head. “Thankfully the rest of us are ready to order as well. I would like the vegetable lasagna and some steamed broccoli.” 

The lynx wrote down their orders. “Good choice madam; and for you sir?” 

“ I would like the six ounce rib-eye medium with a baked potato and mixed vegetables.” 

“ Excellent. I will get these in and they will be out shortly,” The lynx  says just before  walking away . 

“ So, how are you finding your first few days at the ZPD?” Judy asks me and takes a sip of her water.

I shrug and smile at her. “Much the same way I found my private eye business, a bunch of hurry up and wait.” 

Judy shakes her head. “Well  it can't all be fighting monsters every day.” 

“ Thankfully.” I take a deep breath and barely suppress a shudder. “I don't think I could do that every day.”

Judy nods. “That did seem to take a lot out of you.”

I shrug. “It's been a while since I have slung that much magic around.” 

“ So it's like getting in shape?”

“ Somewhat.” 

She looks at me and grins. “You should go running with me in the morning.” 

I raise an eyebrow. 

“ Unless of course you're afraid that I’ll show up the big bad fox.”

I grin. “And who will watch Cotton?” 

“ Don’t worry,  there’s a playground in the middle of the track  that the ZPD uses; she can play while we go for a short run.”

“ Ok,” I concede. “Just how hard could it be?” 

The grin that splits her face is a little worrisome but  it’s too late  to back out  now. “That's the spirit!”  she says excitedly. 

A sense of dread comes over me but is quickly lifted by the arrival of our food.  There’s not much to say about the food other than it was everything I had ever hoped and dreamed it would be. That meal is the pinnacle and shall ever be the standard  by which I judge steak dinners. Not to say anything bad about Finnick's steak sandwiches, as they will always be a staple of my diet,  mostly because  they’re affordable; but for this one meal I get to have a taste of the excellence which the upper class of our society lives on. 

We step outside of the restaurant well fed and happy. The downtown district is much quieter than when we went in. The sun has set lower on the horizon,  bathing the cityscape in enough darkness  to activate the neon lights and street lights. The trees that line the walkway are lit up by strings of LED lights. Some of which dim slightly at my passing. 

We walk to my home, Judy on my left and Cotton on my right holding my paw as she all but  skips down the sidewalk next to me. The evening air has a crispness about it, a fresh feeling that somewhat mirrors the way I feel. I look down at Judy, who has a small little smile on her face as she carries her bouquet of flowers,  and then look back over at Cotton. I have this odd feeling that comes over me, not a bad feeling but one that's hard to describe, as it’s more of a memory of a feeling than anything. 

We enter the alleyway where the entrance to my home resides. The debris has been cleared away from my battle with the demon. ZNN had reported it as a gas explosion.  Thankfully no mammals were critically injured but the final bill to the city has been well over 2.1 million and climbing; who knew a demon attack could cost so much?. 

I open the door and Cotton darts in first, dropping her backpack beside the couch, and I let Judy in before closing the door behind us. I snap my fingers and the candles and fire in the fireplace light, but that doesn't cause me to grin as much as Cotton’s squeals of joy. Honestly? I don’t think the younger rabbit’s sense of wonder and joy at small displays of magic  will ever get old.

I collapse onto the couch, tired and worn out. While the day has been good it's also been long. Our office hours have largely remained the same but I now get up in the morning and walk with Judy and Cotton to HEC. 

“ Hey Slick I'm going to hit the shower; do you mind helping Cotton with her homework?” Judy asks me as she grabs her things.

“ Sure Fluff.” I smile down at Cotton. “So what is it tonight? Math? Science? Reading?”

“ Reading!” Cotton exclaims. 

“ So what are we reading?” 

“ The Three Little Pigs and the Big Bad Wolf.”

“ Oh? What's it about?”

“ The wolf isn't really bad.” Cotton explains. 

“ He isn’t?” 

“Nu-uh ” Cotton says,  shaking her head  as she pulls the book from her backpack. I help her up onto the couch and she snuggles up against my left side as she opens the  ( rather large for a bunny kit ) book in her lap. 

“ Once upon a time…”  she starts. I can hear the shower going in the other room as I lean my head back against the back of the couch. This is a much simpler book  she’s reading tonight; I only have to correct or help her sound out very few words. The routine of it has become relaxing over the last few days and if I’m honest I enjoy it. The story itself has been greatly revised since it was told to me and I’m  frankly grateful, as the original tale is not something I would want a bunny kit to read; in the end instead of eating the little pigs the Big Bad Wolf just had allergies and needed a tissue. 

I hear the shower shut off just as Cotton finishes the book. “Do you think it’s a true story Mr. Nick?”  she asks. 

“ No, I don’t think so.” I smile down at her. “What do you think it’s about?” 

“ A wolf with sneezes?” 

“ Yes , but it's also about not judging something before you have all the facts.”

“ Oh…” She smiles up at me with her big brown eyes. “Will you tell a story tonight Mr. Nick?” I swear her eyes get even larger. “Pwease?”

“ Sorry Kitto not  tonight. ” My ears perk up at the sound of Judy’s voice as she emerges from the bathroom. “We have an early morning tomorrow if  we’re going to make it to the track before it gets  too hot.

“ Aww, Moooom,” Cotton says sweetly. “Pwease?” 

“ Cotton…” Judy says in a voice only a mother could pull off. 

“ But Moooom!” Cotton starts.

“ No buts little  miss ....” Judy starts and I smile at the banter between the two.

“ Can we have pancakes in the morning?” Cotton asks; she  shoots me a look before continuing. “You even got blueberries so pwease?” 

I can hear Judy’s melodramatic sigh  without even turning to look at her. “If you  go get ready for bed then yes. We can have pancakes after Nick and I work out in the morning.”

“ Pancakes yay!” Even my tail wags just a bit, thumping against the couch. Judy eyes me and shakes her head.

“ See even Mr. Nick is excited about pancakes!” Cotton giggles as she heads for the bathroom. 

Judy plops down onto the couch beside me with a dramatic sigh as she waits for Cotton.

“ She’ s a good kit,” I tell her after a moment or two. I can smell the floral fragrance of her fur shampoo. 

“ Yes, yes she is,” Judy  says, then looks over at me. “She likes you.”

I smile and shrug a bit, really unsure of what to say to that. “She has good taste then.” I tell her with a grin, I may be unsure but appearances have to be maintained. 

She looks up at me then back toward the fireplace. “So why did you decide to stay here instead of at your godmother’s place?” I ask. 

Judy looks up at me and then back to the fireplace. “Fifi makes Cotton uncomfortable,”  she answers and I raise an eyebrow. “She says that Fifi’s eyes are wrong and she has a strange feel; besides, Cotton…”

“ Likes me?”

“ Well that and she feels safe around you.” Judy sighs. “ There’s something off about Fifi; I can't put my paw on what but  there’s something…” She trails off for a moment as if she can't quite figure out what she wants to say. “Different.”

Judy looks up at me, I can see a question in her eyes. I know exactly how she feels about Fifi; most mammals feel the same way about any being hiding behind a glamour or a carefully constructed set of spells made to mask their true appearance. Most ignore it or just get  used to the discomfort around the being in question, but I’m guessing that Fluff’s perspective of these things has changed in the last week or so.

“ Ok Mama I'm ready for bed!” Cotton announces as  she  skips back into the living area. I can clearly see that the little bunny's ears are still mildly damp from being washed, as  are her paws. 

“ Ok, tell Mr. Nick good night and let’s get you off to bed,” Judy says kindly as she stands up. 

“ Night Mr. Nick,” Cotton says as she holds her paws up to me in an open invitation for a hug. One that  I’m , if I’m honest with myself, reluctant to pass up as I bend down and let the little bunny wrap her paws around my neck. I honestly cannot help the warm smile that crosses my muzzle at the show of affection from the young rabbit.

I let go as Cotton does and smile at her. “See you in the morning,” I say warmly.

“ See you in the morning Mr. Nick!” Cotton says excitedly as she skips off toward the bed.

“ I’ll be back,” Judy says with a warm smile on her muzzle. “Just need to get her settled.”

I nod as I pick up the book  I’ve been reading off of the side table and open it. Honestly the book doesn't matter; I’m barely even looking at it as my mind pours over the project that I have to work on down in the lab after the rabbits fall asleep.  I’ve been working on a bracelet that will help me project my shield faster and use less of my energy. Enchanting, while an interesting facet of magic, is not my strong suit, but this isn't something I can go down to the local Wizard’s- R-Us super store and buy. Even if I could I couldn’t afford more than a kit. A completed shield bracelet like the one I’m making would cost me well north of what I'm making at the ZPD for a year to have made by a Talismancer.

Judy must have fallen asleep with Cotton as I am left in my thoughts for sometime before I realize that she  hasn’t come back yet. I stand, placing my book quietly down onto the side table, and walk over to the bed in the bottom drawer of the dresser. The two are cuddled together; Judy’s arms are wrapped around her daughter and Cotton  is  snuggled into her chest. 

I pick up the blanket and gently place it over them before I walk over to the mantle. I flip an ornately carved hourglass over and sit it back down onto the mantle. The bulbs of the hour glass are held in ornately carved raven claws. It had been a gift some time ago from my  grandfather . I sit back down quietly onto the couch, picking up my book as I settle in to wait. 

As I read my mind  is  transported to a world  created by George R. R. Martin in which dragons exist  ( not like they don't anyway I just haven't met one yet ) and zombies are only killed by swords of some ancient metal. I glance up every so often at the hour glass and get up to turn it over at least once. After the second hour is past I stand and stretch my back. It makes a slight popping sound.

I make my way over to the far corner of the room and pull back the rugs to reveal the trap door to my lab. As I descend the ladder to my lab I touch an elaborate circle made on the wall just below the opening of the trap door, energizing a spell that I have come to call a cone of silence. It keeps all sound that I might possibly make down in my lab from disturbing the rabbits upstairs. 

I snap my fingers, lighting the candles in the room, and make my way over to the work bench. 

“ Wouldn’t it just be easier to tell the rabbit s about your lab?” Ben asks as I near the table. 

“ Perhaps,” I answer,  sitting down and  picking up the jeweler's monocle, placing it over my right eye as I look over the charms on the bracelet that I have been working on. The bracelet is  made of  intricately woven silver chain links with four small shield pendants hanging from it. All but one shield pendant has carefully carved scroll work and runes. When the last pendant is finished it will allow me to instantly cast four shields a day with just a thought. When cast, the pendants will tarnish and will require me to clean them before the bracelet will recharge once again. But it will be useful  nonetheless . 

“ What are you afraid of?” Ben asks as I pick up the engraving tool that  I’ve been using the last few  nights and start scratching out the outlines of the runes onto the last of the shield pendants. “Afraid that  she’ll find the crushed uranium?” 

I roll my eyes. “Ben, there is no uranium down here.”

“ Second row, third shelf from the bottom, lead container marked U235,” Ben tells me. I look up at the skull for a moment before  taking off my jewelers monocle and  walking down the rows of shelving. A moment later, right where he said it would be, I'm staring at a lead lined container marked U235.

“ Ben?” I ask slowly. “Why is there crushed uranium down here?” 

“ Your,”  he pauses ever so slightly, “ mother kept a well stocked lab. Uranium has many useful magical properties in things such as ghost dust and…” I honestly stop listening after that; just the fact that my lab has uranium in it and I never noticed before is mildly concerning to say the least.

“ As long as you take proper precautions with shielding spells  you’ll be fine; and besides, once it’s used in magic it’s rendered inert,” Ben  finishes a few moments later.

“ Maybe the presence of uranium is a cause of me not wanting to let Judy know that my lab is down here,” I answer as I walk back to the work bench. 

“ Well, you obviously trust her,” Ben states.

“ Maybe.” 

“ Don't give me that, she's upstairs asleep in your bed.” I swear the skull leers at me as I place the monocle back on to  continue working . “Without you, might I add.”

“ We are just…” I pause in my engraving for a moment.  _ Just what are we?  _ “ Friends.” I finish as Ben starts to laugh at me. I glare up at the giggling cheetah skull before turning my attention back to the shield pendant on the table. 

“ Well  there’s no doubt she likes you. Her kit likes you and mammal let me tell you that's half the battle right there.” 

“ Ben, what would you possibly know about romance?” 

“ Nick,  I’ve been around for a long time; you think spells  are the only thing previous wizards have told me? PFFFT!” Ben  says mockingly. “But first you need to get over yourself.”

“ Get over myself how?” I ask, not bothering to pause in my work.

“ There is more to life than spells and enchantments.  You’re a wizard Nick; provided some thug with a gun or something else doesn't kill you,  you’ll live for a very long time and that existence will get lonely.”

“ Then I will outlive her,” I state flatly as I look over my work, making minor adjustments here and there.

Ben is quiet for some time before he  speaks up once again. “It's better to have lived and loved than to have never loved at all. Please Nick, at least think about it.”

I pause and look up at the skull for a long moment. “This isn’t just some ploy of yours for some voyeuristic fetish?” 

“ No, I worry about you,” Ben answers. “But hot fox on bunny would be a decent change of pace,”  he admits.

I chuff as I take off the monocle. “I'll think about it,” I tell him as I clasp the bracelet around my right wrist. 

“That's all I ask.” Ben says as  he scans my bracelet. “That is some decent craftsmammalship.”

“ Thanks,” I answer as I make my way from the workbench to the ladder. Back up in the living area  I shut the trap door quietly and roll the carpet back over it. I silently move through the room toward the couch  and  once again make a small side stop to check on the rabbits. The blanket  is  still over the pair; Judy’s nose twitches slightly in her sleep but  there’s a slight smile on her face. 

I shake my head, breaking myself from my thoughts, and move over to the couch. I stretch out on the couch, placing my paws behind my head as I slowly  relax . My eyes must've not been shut for long when my ears perk up at the light sound of paws hitting the floor and padding across it. A moment later I can hear the bathroom door shut. 

“ Uhh,” I hear a few moments later, followed by a thump onto the floor. The sound repeats a few times and I'm about to get up to see  what’s going on when  there’s a sudden weight on my chest. I open my eyes and look down to see Cotton curled up on my chest, her eyes shut as she slides back  into sleep. I weigh my options.  O n one paw I could get up and put her back to bed; on the other she isn't hurting anything. 

Sleep won out in the end. It could have been the rhythmic breathing of the young rabbit, or  her comforting weight, or maybe a bit of exhaustion from working on the shield bracelet instead of sleeping. Who knows? But I fall asleep before I  can do anything about Cotton sleeping on my chest.

I'm not sure how long I slept. But it was some of the best, most restful sleep of my life. I'm not sure what that says about me and honestly I'm trying really hard not to look into it  too much. I'm awakened by a sharp intake of breath and a quiet but high pitched. “ Aww .” 

I crack an eye and see Judy standing beside the couch looking at the pair of us  with a huge smile on her face. I'm sure if it wasn’t for the fear of  the  magical destruction of her phone a picture of her daughter and I would quickly be circling through our co-workers and perhaps her family as well.

I turn my head slightly and look down at Cotton. She's curled in a ball on my chest; her ears are laid down her back as her chest rises and falls and she has a death grip on my shirt. My eye  rise back to Judy as she softly  strokes Cotton’s ears. “Wake up sleepy head,” Judy  says softly.

“ Mrrmrpanh,” Cotton mumbles and turns over on my chest, scooting away from Judy.

“ You need to get up Cotton,” Judy  says a little more firmly. “You have playing to do and Mr. Nick and I have a run to go on.”

“ And pancakes?” Cotton asks softly as she cracks an eye open.

“ Only if you get up.”

“ OK!” Cotton says excitedly as she bounces off of me and heads to the bathroom. 

I  sit up on the couch and rub my paws across my muzzle. I can feel Judy’s eyes on me. “She went to the bathroom…” I start.

“ I’m not worried about that,” Judy cuts me off. “I’m more concerned if you actually have gym clothes or not.”

I lift my head and look at her. The honest smile on her muzzle tells me that  she’s telling the truth. “I have gym clothes.” Granted  they’re a few years old, but considering the scarcity of my diet I should still be able to fit in them.

“ Good be ready to go in about 20 minutes,”  she states,  walking toward the bathroom as Cotton comes out of it. 

Forty minutes later I'm huffing and wheezing my way around a track. The first lap wasn't so bad, but by the third lap though I was ready to die. Now I'm on the final stretch of lap 12, the last lap of a three mile run. 

“ Come on Slick!” Judy calls from in front of me, and I lift my eyes to see her jogging backwards in front of me. “Just how hard could it be?”  she asks me mockingly. 

I pick up my pace, trying to pass  her, yet she matches me backwards step for step  and stride for stride,  always staying ever so slightly ahead of me. She, in stark contrast to me, is breathing easily, almost as if my hard pace is boring her. 

“ COME ON MR. NICK!” Cotton yells from the sidelines as I near the finish line. I growl as I try to sprint; my side is aching as if I'm being stabbed  but I press on stubbornly. I cross the finish line and collapse onto my side in the grass beside the track, my breathing ragged. 

“ No you don't,” Judy says,  pulling on my arm. “Come on, get up and walk a couple of cool down laps with me.”

I groan, “ Just let me die Fluff.” But I look at her. 

“ Come on you silly fox, a little run won’t do you in will it?” Judy asks mockingly. 

I chuff and slowly get up to my feet. “Not likely.” 

“ There ya go, that's the spirit.” Judy says beside me as we slowly walk around the track. “I'm a little impressed,”  she starts  after allowing me to catch  my breath a bit. “You didn’t give up. Some of my classmates at the academy couldn't say that about their first run.”

“ I’m just full of surprises Fluff,” I tell her as I shoot her a wink.

Judy huffs and shakes her head. “ You’re full of something alright.” She grins up at me. “Ya know if we got you to the gym doing strength training and you keep up with the cardio and keep getting regular meals into you,  you might not be so scruffy looking in a few weeks time.”

_ Weeks,  _ I think  to  myself. Then again, it would be spending time with the rabbit and that's time not spent alone. I smile down at her weakly. “I don't think I'm that bad.”

She eyes me appraisingly. “No maybe not but….”

“ But what Fluff?” I ask. 

“ We’re cops Nick and  as your my partner I need you in better shape,” Judy says.

“ Correction,  you’re a cop and I'm a consultant,” I tell her. “Besides, it's not like I can go to the academy.” I watch as her ears droop just the slightest bit and her  shoulders sag. 

“ You’re right…”  she starts.

I sigh. “Look, if it means so much to you I’ll try,” I tell her,  feeling like I'm signing my own death warrant. 

The smile that lit up her face for  a moment made the pain  I’d be going through later worth it. “Thank you Nick!”  she exclaims. “We’ll lift weights Monday, Wednesday, and Friday…” I  tune her out, she's excited and happy. I can feel the corners of my mouth turn up in a slight smile as we walk around the track and she tells me excitedly all the different ways she’s going to torture me. 

The rest of the weekend passes quietly. We either played games, read books, or told stories. Likewise with the start of the work week, with the only deviation  being that Judy is now getting me up even earlier to work out. By the end of the day I'm tired, sore, and end up going to bed shortly after the bunnies to do. Sometimes Judy stays up and we talk a bit; others she goes to bed when her daughter does and I'm never far behind. Then about mid week…

“ BRZZT, BRZZZT!” Our pagers go off and I attempt to hex mine so it won't disturb my slumber ever again, even though as far as I can tell the blasted thing is indestructible. My eyes crack open as I hear the outer door of the apartment open and turn my head just in time to see Judy slip outside with her cell phone in paw.

I sit up on the couch and swing my legs over as I rub my eyes with my paws.  _ Our pagers wouldn't be going off if Buffalo Butt is giving us the day off.  _ I think to myself as I stretch and stand and start to head to the bathroom. 

I turn my head and look at Judy. “We need to hurry and get Cotton to Olivia’s,”  she says, all but buzzing with excitement. “We have a case!” 


	3. Chapter 2

#  Chapter 2

The red and blue lights of the police cars flicker in the night, lighting up the surrounding buildings in alternating colors. Some mammals stood behind a police barrier that is mostly centered at the mouth of the alleyway between buildings. Even this late there are few looky loos.

The brightly lit club on one side of the alley is the infamous Moonlight Tail Ranch, and really the only reason any mammal would be in this industrial area this time of night. Well that or working the night shift at one of the nearby factories. It’s touted as a strip club, but rumor has it everything is available there for a price; it’s supposedly run by Gentleman Antony Big, the city’s largest crime boss. 

I look over at the bunny in the  driver seat of our ZPD issued cruiser. I’m honestly surprised they found something that didn’t have power everything and give it two or three days to live. “Carrots, you take me to some of the nicest places,” I quip as I pick up my Snarlbucks cup pop open the door.

“ Only the nicest of crime scenes for you Slick,” Judy quips back as she gets out of the cruiser and walks with me toward the cordon. I reach into my pocket to pull out my lanyard before slipping it around my neck. I let her precede me as a wolf officer lifts the crime scene tape for us. 

“ Bogo is back there,” the wolf states flatly.

“ Thanks Wolford,” Judy says as I follow her toward the alley. 

I can’t help but feel the wolf’s eyes upon me as we walk past him towards the alley. The alley itself was busy with CSI mammals going this way and that, sifting through refuse in the alley in the hopes of finding any potential clues that might help to explain what happened here. In the center of it all, keeping a watchful eye on the entire endeavor, stood Chief Bogo. Say what you will about the Cape buffalo and his choice of patrol mammals, but when it comes to CSI techs it seems he has no such qualms about hiring smaller mammals to fulfill those roles. 

I take a sip of my coffee as we approach and I hear, “I can’t believe that we had to wait for these two clowns before Bogo would let us touch the body,” off to my right. I glance down at Judy; if she’d heard what was said she gave no outward appearance of it. But with the size of her ears and the sensitivity of her hearing I’m pretty sure she did. 

“ Hopps, Wilde,” Bogo greeted us. 

“ Chief,” Judy greeted our Boss, and I gave him a salute with my coffee cup. 

“ About time you two showed up,” Bogo gruffs at us. “The body is over here in the dumpster. It was found this morning by a Mr. Davis Deerborne.”

“ What did he hope to find in a dumpster behind this place other than glitter and herpes?” I ask. 

“ Can it Wilde!” Bogo bellows in the alleyway, the sound reverberating off of the brick walls. “I called you two because there’s…” He trails off and waves a hoof in my direction.

Like the dark side cave on Dagobah, a deep sense of foreboding settles over me as I look at the dumpster in question. There’s already a ladder in place, as the city believes that one size fits all in dumpsters: large. The shadows somehow deepen around us, making the flashing red and blue lights from the mouth of the alley seem all the brighter. 

I take the last sip of my coffee and start walking toward the dumpster. Some random CSI tech shoves rubber gloves into my paws and snatches away my coffee cup, mumbling something about “the dumb fox contaminating the crime scene.”

I put my gloves on as Judy ascends the ladder and pauses at the top of it. I watch her ears drop down her back as she carefully steps into the dumpster. I start up the ladder after her, having successfully putting the gloves on and managing not to snag them on my claws. 

I look down into the dumpster to find Judy kneeling beside a female skunk, or what might have been a female skunk. I blink as my mind attempts to reconcile what I see with what my mind tells me should be there. She is laying face down with her head at an impossible angle, giving a clear indication at the cause of death. Her dress, if you could call it that even when it was in one piece, is shredded. Her back is split apart like it has a seam. Instead of blood and gore though, it reveals a light white back with intricate blue markings. 

I frown and swallow nervously as I kneel on the other side of the body. As far as I can tell not a drop of blood had been spilled. I watch as Judy tentatively lifts one side of the mammals fur and it comes up like a garment.  
“ Nick, just what….” Judy starts.

“ Maybe an elf,” I answer and frown. “Most definitely one of the fey.” 

“ Elf…..” She looks at me in confusion. “Like Santa Claws?” 

I chuff at her and shake my head. “No, these elves would never lower themselves to make toys for us mere mortals.”

“ But they will be strippers,” she shoots back.

I shrug as I study the markings some more; they are most definitely arcane in nature. “I know they’re required to learn of us.”

“ Learn what?” Judy asks.

I shrug, my mind flashing back to the arrangement that I’ve made with Fifi. “Who knows? I'm not an elf.”

“ What's this?” Judy asks as she opens the elf's right paw and holds up a small baggie of light blue powder.

“Mmmmm looks like Third-Eye,” Bogo rumbles from outside of the dumpster. “Streets been flooded with the stuff the last few weeks.”

“ Third-Eye?” I ask.

“ Some of the junkies we’ve brought in claim the stuff gives them mystical sight.” Bogo snorts. “Lab work from the samples we’ve obtained says it’s made from an extract of a flower and some substance that so far cannot be identified.”

Judy hands me the baggie. My eyes snap to it in my paw; to say I can feel the raw power coursing through the stuff is an understatement. It feels like I’ve been handed a bare electrical wire. I start to shake slightly. 

“ Which flower?” Judy asks. 

“ Some unpronounceable scientific mumbo jumbo; I'll send you the file we have on it later,” Bogo answers.

“ Do you think it might be connected?” Judy asks me, but but I can barely hear her as I look at the contents of the baggie with my wizard sight. My sight only confirms what I’m feeling. Raw arcane energy is coursing through the powder; it’s as if someone has solidified the underlying power of the universe and ground it up to be snorted up some hapless mammal’s nose. I suddenly know how Galdadriel felt when Frodo offered her the One Ring, as with this innocent looking blue powder I feel I could become the ultimate power in the universe. To say the junk I'm holding in my paw is dangerous is an understatement. 

“ Nick?” Judy asks. 

“ Take it!” I snap and thrust the baggie back into her paws. “Take it and keep that scat away from me!” I step back until my back hits the wall of the dumpster. My heart is pounding and my paws are shaking slightly; I clench my fists to stop them. I feel as if I’ve brushed against the very forces of creation, and that scares me more than Karma herself does. 

“ What's wrong?” Judy asks, looking from me to the bag. 

“ That…” I search for words “ … drug is infused with so much magic that I can feel it.”

“ How?” Judy asks

“ It feels like grabbing onto a bare wire while current is running through it,” I explain, looking at the baggie wearily. “I could do great and terrible things with that much raw power.”

“ Mmmm,” Bogo rumbles above me. “Maybe there’s something to this Third-Eye stuff after all.” The Chief’s perspective of me has taken a dramatic shift after he watched me not only find but burn the corpse of Greg Furgonson with my bare paw. I could hear the Chief scratching his chin with a hoof.

Judy looks at the baggie. “Do you know how this stuff is made?” 

I shake my head. “No,” I answer but the wheels in my head start turning. If I was going to make a magic drug… I shake my head again in an attempt to make the thoughts go away; that's a line of thinking I really don't want to start going down.

“ So drug deal gone bad then?” Judy asks after a few minutes. 

“ Wouldn’t be the first time,” Bogo agrees. I am grateful to them for giving me some time to collect myself. 

The baggie in Judy’s paw is like a siren's call to me. Just a whiff just a small one, and all the power in the universe could be mine. Not even the White Council could stop me, with as much power as that baggie promises. A shiver goes up my spine and suddenly my nostrils are filled with the faint scent of cherries and I hear, “No,” growled in my ear. I turn my head, expecting to come muzzle to muzzle with Karma, but she wasn’t there. 

I force myself to look away from it and back down at the body of the elf at my feet. I don’t think there’s much information left to glean from the elf. The likelihood of there even being an ID in that dress is pretty small. 

“ What do we do with her?” Bogo asks, motioning to the elf’s body.

I shrug. “I wouldn’t recommend doing an autopsy. Elves are secretive; someone should be along to collect her.” 

“ We should try to find her dealer,” Judy says. “If we can track that mammal down we’ll probably find her killer; and maybe we can trace them by the supplier of this stuff,” she adds, waving the enticing baggie.

I nod, my eyes watching the baggie involuntarily. “Her boss or coworkers might know something.”

“ Give that to the CSI techs; have them run it against the samples we already have to see if there’s anything different.” Bogo eyes me and adds. “And keep it away from your partner.” 

Judy nods and eyes me. “Probably a good idea.” She heads for the ladder. “Come on Nick, we got work to do.”

I nod and follow her. I feel relief when the baggie is safely out of my sight in an evidence container and we walk toward the mouth of the alley. As soon as we round the corner toward the entrance to the club there’s a sudden yank on my tie and I am brought muzzle to muzzle with a very angry and very concerned looking rabbit. 

“ Do you have a drug problem?” she asks me bluntly. 

“ What?” I start, surprised at the sudden question. “Judy, no….”

“ Because for the last ten minutes you’ve been acting like a junkie and I was holding your next fix,” she all but hisses at me. “And don't for one second think Bogo didn’t notice. I put my neck out on the line for you Nick so I ask again, do you have a drug problem?” 

I sigh and look away. “It was like being handed a shortcut to everything you’ve wanted.” She lets go of my tie and I straighten up. “I’m sorry, but it was like it sung to me. I never knew that stuff existed. Hell, I don't think any wizard in the world knew that was possible until today.”

Judy looks up at me and sighs. “I believe you, and I’m sorry; it’s just that Cotton likes you and that's no small thing to me.” 

I nod somewhat understandingly. I feel like she's trying to tell me something but I’m just not catching on. “Come on,” she says, pulling me back out of my thoughts. “Let’s see what the club manager has to say.”

I’m not sure what I expected from this place. I’ve never been here and maybe it would be much more impressive if the house lights weren’t fully up and the illusion of grandeur broken. The crushed red velvet carpet looks as if it hasn’t been cleaned in a while. The walls, which might once have been a rich vibrant color, are now just a faded memory of themselves. The stages with their worn brass plated poles stood empty, and while I'm sure typically at this time of night the place would be busy, it’s dead, more than likely thanks to the police presence outside. Dead enough that the girls that work here are sitting in the customer seats looking bored even while they look at their phones. 

“ Whatcha doin’ here toots?” a greasy looking weasel in a cheap suit that looks like it might have fit his second or third cousin greets Judy. “If ya lookin’ for a job you’ll have ta show me ya can shake those buns.”

Honestly I'm not sure if Judy could look more unimpressed even if she tried. “Judy Hopps, ZPD,” she introduced herself, flashing her badge and ID. “This is my partner Nick Wilde; we’re here to ask about….”

“ Clare, and I gots nuthin’ ta say to da fuzz.” The weasels eyes went from Judy to myself and back to her. “I knows nutin’, I’ve seen nutin’, I've done nutin’.” 

Judy pulls out a notebook. “No one is accusing you of anything Mr…”

“ Weaselton, Duke Weaselton, and you and your fuzz friends need to leave; you’re costin’ me money,” Duke says angrily at her. A couple of the girls look up then and roll their eyes before going back to their phones. I scan over them; they’re a hodgepodge crew of both prey and predators, most looking under fed and tired. 

“ Now Clare, is that the name of the dead Mephitis?” she asks. “How long has she worked here?”

“ I know my rights; I don’t have to tell you anythin’!” Duke all but shouts at Judy while managing to switch the toothpick in his mouth from one side to the other. 

I watch as Judy’s right ear twitches just a bit; it’s almost imperceptible, but enough to let me know shes getting irritated with the weasel in question. I’m about to say something when Judy’s posture changes; the tips of her ears flop forward ever so slightly and she leans more heavily on her left leg. 

“ Look Mr. Weselton…” she starts.

“ It’s Weaselton!” Duke snaps back.

“ Right, Weaselton, that's what I said,” she says slyly. “Why don’t you help us help you. Tell me about Clare, who by the way is currently face down in your dumpster, so that we, and by we I mean the police, can get out of your fur and you can go back to making money.”

Dukes eyes move between me and the rabbit, then finally settled on Judy once again. “Fine Cottontail, ask your questions then get out of my club.”

“ How long has Clare worked here?” Judy asks. 

“ About six months.” 

“ Seven,” chimes in one of the girls to the side. “You give us our first month free, but you’ve been taking ten percent of her tips for about six months.”

Duke shrugs sheepishly as my eyes drift back over the girls. 

“ Do you know if she had a drug problem?” Judy asks. 

“ I’m not sure what ya gettin’ at Cottontail, but I run a clean joint; but if one of the girls takes something to help her loosen up and smile more and brings in more money … ” Duke shrugs as he rubs his thumb and forefinger together. “Who am I to argue what they do with their bodies?”

Judy taps her pen on her chin. “That could almost be considered facilitating a crime, which the DA would argue makes you an accomplice. Tell me, does the security camera in the alley work?”

Duke swallows nervously. “It's been broke for a while…”

“ It hasn’t worked since I started here,” one of the girls speaks up as she stands. A lioness wearing a dark blue fur tight evening dress split way up the sides. “And I've been here for almost a year.”

I raise an eyebrow and turn to look at Judy, whose right foot is thumping rapidly against the floor, 

“ You do know that it’s mandatory that your outer security cameras are functional and that failure to maintain them is at a minimum a $10,000 fine as well as possibly six months incarceration,” Judy says. I can feel her ire toward Duke Weaselton growing by the second. 

I look from Judy to Duke, who suddenly looks like he’s about to bolt, and subtly move myself between him and the front door. Duke’s eyes dart to me once again as I move and then back to Judy. I can tell he’s weighing his options as Judy has backed him straight into a corner of his own making.

“ Now, Mr. Weaselton,” Judy starts, “I might be willing to overlook these minor infractions if you’re a little more forthcoming with information AND promise to get the camera fixed by the end of the week.” 

I smile.  _ Oh, clever bunny _ , I think to myself as I watch Duke’s shoulders collapse. 

Dukes eyes dart to her. “She went out back ta meet a regular. The front cameras work fine…” 

“ Need a little more to go on Mr Weaselton,” Judy prompts.

Duke’s eyes get panicky as he looks to the girls for help.

The lioness rolls her eyes. “She was meeting with a male dingo, late teens early twenties, about this tall,” she supplies, holding up her paw just under shoulder height. “He has a wandering left eye.” 

“ You know this how?” Judy asks. 

“ He was my regular up until Clare started to work here,” the lioness says. “Honestly, he's a little creep but he pays well enough. I was happy to be rid of him.” 

“ If he paid well enough why were you happy to be rid of him?” I ask, and Judy nods to me.

The lioness looks between me and Judy as if weighing whether her answer would get her in trouble or not. “Look,” Judy says, pulling the attention firmly to her, “we’re only trying to understand what might have happened to your friend.”

The lioness nods. “Ed could get demanding and demeaning. I’d put up with him for months, and like I said he paid well but that just made him feel more entitled.”

“ Did Clare ever complain about him?” Judy asks.

“ Constantly,” She pauses. “But while Ed could be demanding I don't think he would ever hurt anyone…”

“ Do you have contact information for this Ed?” Judy asks. 

The lioness picks up her cell phone and her thumb starts moving along the screen. I take a cautious step back. “Yes, here it is,” the lioness says after a few minutes. “555-4237.” Judy nods as she writes it down. 

“ There Cottontail you got what ya wanted now leave!” Duke all but spits at her; his spine clearly has grown back in. 

“ Oh we’re not done yet Mr. Weselton,” Judy says as she turns her attention back to the weasel. I almost can’t help the approving smug smile that stretches across my face. “You’re going to get me a copy of the video surveillance of this evening, then you’re going to make appointments to have your cameras fixed by the end of the week.” 

Duke coughs at that. “But tha will cost me a fortune!” he shouts, waving his paws around.

“ If they’re not fixed by the end of the week when my partner and I come to check then I’ll be left no choice but to arrest you.” Judy’s grin borders on smug. I can tell she knows she’s won. 

I lean against the end of the bar as the two move into the office behind it. Judy uses her body to hold the door open. I’m grateful that she keeps the line of sight open between us, as me going into the office with them would have only caused the computer in it to act up. I look over the assemblage of females and shake my head. One of the main things that comes clear is that most of them could really use a sandwich as they all look underfed. 

I glance back toward the office and see that Judy’s right foot is thumping in irritation once again. I close my eyes briefly and open them again taking a quick glance around the place with my wizard sight. But as expected, everything here is mundane, no tendrils of hate or lust or anything magical about the place. 

“ Ok, Nick,” Judy says as she walks back up to me and I revert back to normal sight. “Let’s go talk to Mr. Deerborne.” 

I nod as we make our way toward the front of the club. “Did you notice anything strange about the place? she asks me.”

“ Other than the weasel being cheap?” I grin as she glares up at me. “Nothing magical about the place.”

Judy nods as we walk out of the club. Honestly I’m glad to have left the place; it reeks of broken dreams and desperation. We approach a white tail deer sitting on the trunk of a police cruiser. Davis Deerborne is everything that I pictured when Bogo told us his name. His antlers are just starting to come in for the summer and he’s wearing clothes that look like they haven’t been washed…. well, ever. There are spots on his face and arms where the fur is missing due to mange. The mammal is obviously homeless and jobless. I try not to think about it, but the thought comes in anyway about how easily this could have been me.

“ Mr. Deerborne?” Judy asks as we approach. 

He eyes both of us wearily before answering. “That’s me.”

Judy nods and opens her note book. “I’m Officer Judy Hopps with the ZPD and this is Nick Wilde, my partner. We just have a few questions about….”

“ The body I found,” the deer cuts her off. “I haven't seen anything like that even with my time in Afcatistan and Irqclaw.” 

“ You were in the service?” Judy asks, and I watch as Davis nods. “Than…”

“ Save me your platitudes Officer Hopps,” Davis cuts her off once more. “The Marines took a leg and left me too many ghosts to count; just ask your questions.” 

Judy looks up at the deer in shock but nods. “What were you doing going through the dumpster?”

“ I was looking for cans and bottles,” Davis tells her. “This has become my go-to spot for them, as these mammals seem to be lazy and just throw everything into the garbage instead of sorting it out like they’re supposed to. But I can easily get 40 to 50 dollars worth a night here.” 

Judy nods as she takes notes. “See or hear anything suspicious?”

“ No she, at least I think it was a she, was already dead when I opened the dumpster maybe an hour or two ago now,” Davis said.

“ Have you seen her back there before?” she asks, and I see the look on Deerborne’s face.

“ I have on more than one occasion,” Deerborne answers. “And no she was never alone.” 

Judy nods. “Was she in the company of a male dingo?” 

“ Sometimes,” Davis answers. “To be honest Officer Hopps, I didn’t pay attention to who she was in there with; I’d just wait against the building and let them finish their business.”

Judy nods. “Did you ever see her buy a new drug called Third-Eye?” Judy asks.

Davis looks confused for a moment. “You mean Blue?” he asks. “Why would she have to buy it? The street pushers are offering that shit for free and I'm sure there’s been more than one in The Ranch.”

Judy and I both look at the deer in surprise.

“ I won't touch that shit.” Davis continues. “I’ve seen first hoof what that does to mammals; if it doesn’t kill them outright they go crazy and start spouting gibberish.”

“ They’re giving it away?” Judy asks.

Davis nods. “I didn’t think it was that big of a secret. I mean, they still offer their other stuff, like ‘nip and what not, but they always offer some Blue with it as well.” He scratches the back of his neck and shrugs.

I suddenly remember something that Ben told me.  “ _ It was a hungry thing that inspired madness wherever it roamed. Caused the fall of one of the greatest empires in mammaldom and drove the world into a dark age that took centuries to come out of.”  _

I swallow the doubts I’ve had in the ensuing days since my fight with Memnoth and what the media has dubbed the Missing Mammal Massacre. Thankfully City Hall or maybe Chief Bogo have kept most of the details about the end of that case under wraps. But one thing is now dreadfully clear to me: Memnoth wasn’t all that came through that summoning circle out in the forest and I need more information; but who or what do I ask about it? 

“ Come on Nick.” Judy says as she heads toward our cruiser and I’m pulled from my thoughts. I climb into the passenger seat, my thoughts still a jumbled mess. 

“ I know that look,” Judy says as soon as the  driver side door of the cruiser shuts. “It's your brooding wizard look so out with it.”

“ Nothing gets past you does it Fluff?” I ask with a grin, hoping to deflect just a bit.

“ No and don't you forget it.” She says to me as her eyes harden just slightly. “Now out with it; something Deerborne said made you start brooding.”

I lean my head back against the seat. “The thing that killed your ex … ”

“ What about it,” Judy says, her voice and eyes softening just a bit.

“ I don’t think it came here alone,” I tell her, and sigh. 

“ What do you mean?” 

“ When I first started to do some research into that summoning circle, I came across an … ” I pause, trying to word the information carefully, “ … account of a warlock that helped bring either it or something similar to this plane of existence. Using a circle much like the one in the forest” 

“ You’re just telling me this now?!” she seethes at me 

“ Look, it’s not that I wasn't going to tell you, but other things happened first….” 

I look over at her as she takes a deep breath. “You’re right, I’m sorry, you’re right. So what did your account have to say?”

“ Not much, but it caused the collapse of an empire, drove the world into a dark age, and required a great sacrifice to kill. You know small things like that.”

Judy groans. “So you think that’s connected how?”

“ Well, this drug is being given away freely…” 

“ Oh.”

I look over at her and see the understanding on her face and nod. “Yeah…”

Judy settles into the driver seat and stares out over the long hood of cruiser. The silence between us is deafening. “If we track down the source of Third-Eye maybe we can get ahead of it before it gets too bad.” I can hear the resolve in her voice.

“ Maybe,” I pause, thinking about what else Ben had to say.

“ What?” She looks over at me as she starts the car. “There’s more isn’t there?”

“Nope,” I lie, Ben’s voice ringing in my ears to move to Chicowgo. “Think we can get some breakfast?”

Judy looks at me dubiously. “It will give the lab time to process that sample. I wonder what flower it’s derived from.” 

I shrug. “Oh hey, I'm going to need your help later.” 

“ With?” she asks as she navigates onto the street. 

“ The ATM.”

Judy laughs at me softly. “Oh yes mighty wizard, I will help you vanquish your mortal foe the dreaded ATM!” She looks at me from the side of her eye. “This isn’t some ploy of yours to get me to pay for breakfast is it?”

“ Oh Carrots, nothing gets past you,” I grin over at her. 

Judy just shook her head. “Dumb fox.”

“ Sly bunny.”


	4. Chapter 3

# Chapter 3

The restaurant that Judy takes me too is…. Cute, I guess, is the best word to describe it. Honestly I didn’t even know there was such a place as this. Well I know there are International House of Pancakes all over the place but a totally bunny themed one? Trust me when I say this place is bunny themed I mean bunny themed. The menus have little bunny ears on them, the tasty rabbit picks all have little bunny heads with their tongue half out to one side of their mouth in only what I can assume is a ‘yum’ symbol of some sort. The backs of the chairs are all made to look like rabbit ears. The paint work is all bright colors of pink, blue, yellow, and green. I’m not sure how she can stomach this place, as it seems to be a caricature of what mammals must think bunny culture is; or maybe that’s the point, I dunno. 

We are seated in a booth meant more for mammals of my size. I raise an eyebrow at the whirring sound of electric motors as Judy's seat rises for her comfort. I highly doubt that those will survive the meal but choose not to voice that concern as I look down at my menu. 

“ I only like coming here because this place reminds me of home,” Judy says as she looks over her own menu. 

I look up at her with confusion. “So, what, the entire town looks like…” I wave my paw at the restaurant around us.

She nods without looking up. “Well, at least the touristy bits of downtown and the train station do.” 

I look at her in disbelief. “What?” she asks. “It keeps the town afloat, allows kits there to have a quality education, and brings in much needed tax revenue.”

“ You don't find it a little bit demeaning?”

Judy shrugs. “Maybe it is a little bit, but for the most part it’s just giving mammals the experience that they want. No different than an amusement park really.”

I look back down at my menu; they’ve sectioned off an area of the menu with a caricature of a wolf licking his chops for the Happy Chomps Menu. There was a warning that all meat products might be cooked by prey that, while trained, might not fully meet expectations. That right there was enough to cause me to not want to get any bacon here. 

“ Good morning, I'm Denise and I'll be your server this morning. Can I start you off with anything to drink?” I look up to see a rabbit doe with blue eyes and fur almost the color of coffee with cream standing before us wearing black slacks and a white collared shirt.

“ Hey Denise!” Judy says cheerfully. I get a sinking feeling in my stomach. 

“ Oh hey Judes!” Denise greets her. “Sorry I didn’t see you for your tall dark and foxy friend.”

Judy rolls her eyes at the other rabbit. “Denise I’d like you to meet my partner Nick Wilde. Nick this is my sister Denise, she's studying at the university.”

“ Pleasure to meet you Mr. Wilde,” Denise says to me as she eyes me up and down. “Partnered with a fox eh? Mom and Dad are going to love this. Speaking of which, you need to call them; they’ve been worried about you and Cotton.” 

I lift my eyes from my menu to Judy, who looks away slightly embarrassed. “I've been busy; I, uhhh, got a promotion at work.”

“ I can see that; I don’t think meter maids need partners.” She eyes me again. “So just what did you get promoted to?”

“ Ummmm, Special Investigations.”

“ Wow that's quite a bit of a step up from meter maid. Just how did you manage that? I thought all you wanted to be was a beat cop.”

I hear an. “Ahem…” and Denise’s eyes get big before she turns back to us. “Ummm, I need your drink orders so I can check on my other tables…..”

“ I’ll have a coffee,” I answer, turning my attention back to my menu. 

“ Carrot juice,” Judy says before putting her menu aside and placing her head down into her paws.

I raise an eyebrow as Denise hurries away. “Something wrong Fluff?”

“ She's going to tell our parents….” Judy mumbles into her paws before looking up at me. “I’m sure by now Olivia has told them of….” She pauses, searching for words, “ … of Cotton and I being your roommates; I'm sure they’re going to start bugging me for details now.”

“ Well that doesn't sound so bad….” I shrug. “Besides, your phone is off most of the time because you’re around me.”

The expression on her face as that sudden realization hits her… well there is no other word for it other than cute. I grin at her and shrug before looking over the menu one last time. “They can't bug you if they cant get ahold of you.”

She smiles slyly and reaches across the table to place a paw on my for arm where it rested on the table. “Thanks Nick.”

“ What are partners for?” I ask, shooting her a wink.

“ Ok,” Denise starts as she comes back with our drink s . “Here is one coffee for tall dark and foxy,” she says, placing a large cup of coffee down in front of me, “and one carrot juice for my big sister. Did you two….” Her eyes dart from Judy’s paw to me and then back to her sister. 

Judy pulls back her paw suddenly. 

“ Sorry,” Denise says, shaking her head for a moment.” Are you two ready to order or do you need a moment?” 

I can see Judy tense up and I shrug. “I’d like pancakes with a side of blueberries.” 

“ Can I interest you in a side of bacon?”

“ Not today thank you.”

“ And you Judes?”

Judy relaxes slightly. “Can I get a vegetable medley omelette?” 

“ Sure,” Denise says, writing down our orders. “Anything else I can get you?”

Judy shakes her head. “Not right now; thanks though.”

Denise shoots her a look. “Call Mom and Dad,” she says as she gathers up our menus and leaves. 

I raise an eyebrow at Judy, then watch as her shoulders slump just a bit. “Ugggh,” she groans.

“ I take it you don't like calling your parents?” I ask. 

She sighs and rolls her eyes. “‘No bunny has ever been a cop Jude,’” she starts in a voice that I assume is meant to sound like her mother. “‘You can't go to Zootopia. There are predators there and you know how they are, especially foxes; they’re the worst,’” she continues, this time her voice deepening in what I assume is an imitation of her father and huffs. “‘I just don’t want Cotton exposed to that.’” She looks up at me. “Cotton loves you and it would break her heart to hear my dad speak that way of foxes.”

I frown. “She said you guys did smores on the farm though….”

“ We haven't been there in maybe two years now. Dad and I had a pretty big fight just before I entered the academy. Olivia watched Cotton for me while I trained to be a cop. My folks were supposed to but…..”

I nod somewhat in understanding and study the rabbit across from me. I feel like there’s something important in the undertones of this conversation, something I'm not quite getting; it's important but it’s just slightly beyond my grasp. I grin slyly. “Well for the record I think Cotton is a pretty awesome kit; you’ve done well Carrots.’

Judy smiles slightly. “Thanks Nick.”

My grin goes smug. “And for the record, her mother isn't half bad either” I say, shooting her a wink. She smiles and glances away from me then giving me a side eyed glance. 

“ Ok here we go: one Veggie Omelette for you Judes, and one stack of pancakes with a side of blueberries for you,” Denise says as she puts our plates in front of us. “Can I get you two anything else?” 

“ Another cup of coffee would be great,” I tell her. 

“ I’m good.” 

Denise nods at me. “I'll be right back with that coffee.” 

The pancakes pale in comparison to the ones Carrots had made. The blueberries are pretty good though, and I’m able to get a large coffee to go. The sun is just starting to brighten the sky as we leave the restaurant and we climb into our cruiser to head to the precinct. I’m honestly curious to see what the lab has to say about that blue powder. I frown and take a sip of my coffee as I start to think about that stuff. The amount of power contained in that little baggie is hard to quantify but, needless to say, it's a lot. 

I take a sip of my coffee. In order to contain that amount of power it would need to reside in something that the body could process. What’s even more troubling to me is that they’re just giving the stuff away. 

My frown deepens as I brood. When I first started to learn to use magic I wanted to be able to snap my fingers and make a cup of coffee appear. While I was technically successful I was wrecked for the rest of the day, and all I had to show for it was a mouse sized cup of coffee. I asked my grandfather about the problem and he just laughed at me. 

“ _ Boy, one day you might be strong enough to pull something like that off, but you’ll have to expend at least ten times the amount of energy than is inside of something to create it, _ ” his voice rumbles in my ears.

My eyes widen slightly and I put my coffee cup back into the cup holder before my shaking paw spills it. Whoever is making the drug has either figured out how to efficiently tap into the very fabric of existence or is a powerful enough wizard to rival some of the elder wizards on the council or both.

“ Nick?” Judy asks, pulling me from my thoughts. “You’re brooding again.”

I chuff at that and glance over at her. “Thinking about the creation of Third Eye.” 

I can see her grip the steering wheel tighter. “You’re not going to…”

“ No,” I say abruptly, cutting her off. “It’s more like a…” I wave a paw as I try to come up with the words to explain, “how is it possible kind of deal.”

“ Is it?” Judy asks. 

I frown and look down at my coffee cup. “It shouldn’t be,” I say flatly. “Not on a scale that would make it viable for distribution.” 

“ Why?” I glance over at her and can see the curiosity in her eyes. 

“ Destruction is easy,” I start to explain. “It takes very little energy to throw a fireball. Even alchemy, like the invisibility potion. But I don't think this was created by alchemy, since almost all alchemy is liquids due to liquid being able to dissolve and hold other things.” 

“ But it could be alchemy?”

I huff. “Maybe, but highly doubtful.”

“ Why’s that?” 

“Because alchemy always contains eight key components. First you need a base, something to mix everything else into. Then you need something for each of the five senses: sight, sound, touch, hearing, taste,  and smell . Lastly, you need something that engages the mind and soul. You let them mix together, pour just a bit of will power into it, and presto you have a potion.”

Judy nods. “What if you made it a solid somehow, like jello?”

I think about it for a moment. “Jello would probably work for a potion, but what was in that baggie was more like salt, and you can’t turn a liquid potion into that and still have that much energy left in it.” 

“ Ok so what are you thinking?”

“ It was created.” I pause, thinking about it. “Could be transmutation but that's where it becomes impossible, or should be at least.” 

“ Should be?” 

“ Well the stuff exists so it’s obviously been done, but it’s just a question of how. See, creation magic requires that more energy be expended to make an object than it contains, and that little blue powder contains more energy than should be possible to channel.”

“ So you couldn’t make it?” she asks as she pulls our cruiser into its assigned spot at the precinct building.

I shake my head. “I _might_ be able to channel enough power to make three grains of it. But then only if I know fully what's in it and what process they’re using.” I pause, thinking about it. “Even then just doing it would probably leave me drooling on my workbench for three days.”

“ Yes that wasn’t pretty the last time so please don’t.” Judy shakes her head. “So we’re looking for what, a gang of wizards?” 

“ Doubtful, wizards don’t tend to work like that,” I chuff. “We like our secrets a bit to much and that would force whoever the ring leader is to share the knowledge of how to do this.”

“ And knowledge is power,” Judy says as she eyes me. “You seem very forthcoming with knowledge for me lately Slick.” 

I nod and open my door. “You need to know what we might be getting into Fluff, and it's not like you could use it against me anyway.”

I hear her car door shutting just before I see her stepping from between the parked cruisers. Her ears are hanging down her back. “Nick…. I wouldn’t use anything you told me against you.” She looks up at me.

“ I know.” I study her face for a moment. “You’re a good mammal Judy Hopps.”

“ How do you know Nick?” she asks. “I could be rotten on the inside.”

“ Cotton.” 

She pauses and looks up at me. “But…”

I shake my head, looking around the parking garage and then back down to her. “You’ve raised Cotton in your image. She, like you, will do great things in her lifetime Fluff.”

“ Thank you.” She takes a deep breath and smiles up at me. “Come on, let's go see what the lab can tell us.”

We walk side by side as we enter the building. We’re so early that the day shift hasn’t even had morning briefing yet and the night shift is still milling about the place. It might just be my imagination, but I can feel the eyes of the police officers on me as we walk through them heading for the stairs.

Our coworkers part as we pass through them. They move back to a respectable distance but radios still crackle with static as I pass by them. 

I hear one of them whisper. “Aren’t they supposed to come in later to avoid equipment issues?”  _ So that's why we have the office hours we do, _ I muse to myself. I’m half tempted to blow up a radio or two just for good measure, but a sharp elbow in my side from the bunny puts that idea to bed. Besides, these are supposed to be my co workers, though don't think for a minute I don’t notice the suspicious glares thrown my way or hear the hushed whispers of either me having dirt on the Chief or other things. 

I look around as we walk down the hall from the stairs toward lab services; it might just be my imagination but the second floor always seems a bit cleaner since Chief Buffalo Butt’s office is on the second floor. Our working relationship is a bit better after he watched me put down Craig Furgonson, but I wouldn't put us on friendly terms; maybe just cordial. 

“ Wait here,” Judy says just before entering the lab and I lean against the door. This has become standard practice for us entering government offices. Sometimes she just lets whatever will happen happen, but I’m betting there are some very sensitive and expensive gadgets in there that the city would prefer not to have to replace. 

I cross my arms and wait. You’d think with all the “hurry up and wait” experience I have I’d be good at it, but I'm not. I don't think any mammal likes to just stand around and wait. I should start carrying around one of those note pads that Judy has; maybe then I can make notes about projects or something while I'm just standing around. 

I don’t have long to wait this time though before the door to the lab opens, drawing my attention from my thoughts to Judy and the mammal that follows her, a male Koala. Grey fur and light brown eyes behind wire rim glasses. He’s wearing a long white lab coat, black slacks, and a blue shirt. 

“ Mr. Wilde,” the Koala greets me. “I’m Dr. Henry Treeroot, Chief of Forensic Sciences here at the ZPD. It is in my koalafied opinion a pleasure to meet you.” I shake the doctor’s paw, causing his watch to give a mournful beep before the magic blue smoke wafts out of it. 

“ Umm sorry,” Judy says as she looks between us. 

“ Fascinating,” Dr Treeroot says, looking at his now useless iCarrot watch. “Tell me Mr. Wilde, did you feel an electrical surge or anything?”

“ No Doc, that just kind of happens around me.” 

He nods then looks at me some more. “Well, I was warned.” He takes off the watch and drops it into a pocket of his lab coat. “I should have heeded koalafied advice of Officer Hopps and left all of my electronics in my office. You wouldn’t have some sort of EMP device on you, would you?” 

I frown as I look at him in confusion. “All I got is this.” I pull my pager out of my pocket. “For some reason it seems immune.”

He peers at the pager. “Interesting…..”

“ Sorry Dr. Treeroot, but you were going to tell us about Third Eye?” Judy prompts. 

“ Oh yes, sorry, sorry. You, Mr. Wilde, present me with a new tree of knowledge that I'm not sure what to do with. But your partner is quite right. Third Eye is a mixture of an extract from midnicapum holicithias and several other chemicals, namely dopamine, epinephrine, and serotonin, designed to disrupt the brain's amalgamate system.” He pauses as he looks between Carrots and me. I’m pretty sure we both have the same dumbfounded expression on our faces.

“ In other words, I’d say it is one hell of a hallucinogen,” he clarifies for us. There is one compound that we can’t identify though,” . 

“ What do you mean you can’t identify it?” Judy asks. 

“ Meaning just that Officer Hopps; we can test for it, we can quantify it, we can see its chemical makeup. But it shouldn't exist! Everything I know of chemistry says it shouldn't exist, yet it does. The leading minds in the field say it shouldn’t exist, yet they’ve been sent samples of it.” 

Judy looks up at me and I shrug. I still have no idea on how this stuff is made so I can’t even begin to offer insight into it. “Magic?” I offer.

Dr. Treeroot snorts and looks up at me. “Any sufficiently advanced technology is magic to those that don’t understand it,” he states skeptically. I smile at the good doctor; a part of me wants to set my paw on fire and see how he reacts but I think that would make Judy upset with me.

“ Midnicampum holicithias…..” Judy says quietly as she frowns, an intense look on her face, as if she’s trying to remember something.

“ Yes, it’s commonly used as….” the doctor starts.

“ Insect repellent!” Judy cuts him off. “My family has used it for years, as an all natural insect repellent, but it’s dangerous. We had to wear rubber gloves and pull the stuff up before harvest, then burn it to dispose of it. But if we left the bulbs in the ground they would just regrow next year and we wouldn't have to replant.” 

Dr. Treeroot nods. “The extract from the flower is in itself a powerful drug that could cause a mammal’s higher brain functions to take a back seat to lesser, more base instincts.” He pauses and looks between us. “For all intents and purposes a mammal on it would appear as if they are savage, but mammals on Third Eye are anything but savage. They’re hallucinating, seeing things that aren’t there, and spouting almost nonsensical gibberish.” 

“ Gibberish?” I know skepticism seeps into my voice. 

“ Mmmm, yes, gibberish or at least as well as I can tell.” Tree Root eyes me skeptically. “We have a couple down in holding that are awaiting transport to Zootopia General; you can go see for yourself.”

I look down at Judy, who nods at me. “Thank you for your time Doctor Treeroot.”

“ Indeed.” He eyes the pair of us. “If you find the lab that Third Eye is made in I would love to see it. It would be fascinating to see what kind of process is used to make that compound. A real feast of knowledge! Maybe it can be used for some good.”

“ Come on Nick, let’s go see if you can make anything out of what’s being spouted down in holding,” Judy says as she starts to turn. I nod and turn to follow her.

“ Mr. Wilde?” Dr. Treeroot calls to me, and I pause to look toward him. “If you find yourself with some free time I would be very interested in seeing what can be learned form you.”

I nod. “We’ll see Doc,” I answer before turning and walking back down the hall with Carrots.

“ What do you think Nick?” Judy asks as we descend the stairs to the first floor. We have to go through booking in order to get to the holding cells. “Do you think there’s a way that stuff can be turned to a good purpose?”

I frown in thought. It’s entirely possible that the process could be used to make all sorts of drugs, maybe even a cure for cancer or some other insidious disease that runs ripe in mammaldom. It’s not like wizards do studies for magic used in cancer treatment, as we just don't suffer those ailments. It seems our magic, our connection to whatever makes that possible, wants to keep us alive for as long as possible; barring a bullet to the brain, it takes quite a bit to kill us.

That's not to say wizards are the only long lived beings on the planet. I mean there are vampires and some truly savage mammals that live an extraordinarily long time. Then of course there are dragons and elves. And while I’m thinking about it there are also rumors of a mammal in Tempe that has lived far longer than he has any right to . 

“ I don’t know Carrots, maybe,” I answer with a shrug. “Maybe not; keep in mind I might only have the vaguest idea of how this stuff is being made, and that by itself doesn't mean much.” 

Judy nods and thankfully doesn’t press the issue. I shudder to think what might happen if mammaldom on a whole suddenly embraced the knowledge that magic exists. I vastly prefer the crank calls over being made a slave in a lab, no matter how much social good could ever come from it.

Judy turns as we reach the bottom of the stairs and heads toward booking. “We have to go through booking to get to the holding cells,” she explains and I nod, following her. I can feel the eyes of some of the mammals in the booking office staring at me, or maybe that's just my imagination. I’m sure they’ve seen many of my kind come through here at some point or another. Judy signs us in and suddenly a buzzer rings out for a moment, catching me off guard before it shorts out and dies in a mournful wail. 

The noise of the holding area strikes us with an almost physical force. Some of it is just animalistic yowls and near barking. Other bits of it are other mammals yelling at those to ‘shut the hell up.’” Yet some….. some of it has the cadence of a dialect that these mammals shouldn’t know. 

I pause at a cell and peer inside; there’s a red fox tod, maybe 16 or 17, stripped to the waist with a blanket around his shoulders rocking back and forth in the center. He was softly singing. “Oo-de-lally… yo ho ho the grey ones come……”

“ The grey ones?” I ask, frowning.

His blue grey eyes snap open and he slowly turns his head to look at me. They have a luminescence about them as they glow softly in the dim light of the cell. “I see you wizard,” he hisses, his voice changing as he turns. “I see you; I see that which walks behind you…….” His voice grows crackly and gravely. “Behold I see a pale horse and he who sits on him, his namessss is death…..” He twists his head to the side almost seeming to be looking at me from upside down. “You shall diesss alone cold and broken wizard. Yourrrrrr friendses will abandon you inssss your time of need.” I back up slightly as the teen starts to cough and falls to his paws and knees as he throws up.

The teen grabs at his stomach, looking back up at me with his now dim blue grey eyes and mutters, “I want my mom,” before throwing up on the floor again. 

It’s sobering to say the least; his words almost rang of prophecy. I swallow nervously. It's only as I turn and start to walk out of holding that I realize the teen hadn’t spoken a word of Common at all until he asked for his mom. I look back at him for a moment before glancing a Judy. She eyes me then looks at the teen. 

“ What did he say?” She asks.

“ He spoke of something he has no way of knowing,” I answer cryptically. The atmosphere in the building suddenly becomes stifling and I start walking quickly toward the exit. 

“ What did he speak of?” I can hear Judy’s paw falls behind me as she follows me. “Nick, what has you so spooked?” She grabs my paw and stops me in my tracks. 

“ It's a secret,” I hiss just low enough for her to hear. 

“ Fine, keep your … ” She starts to pull away but I tighten my paw around hers, causing her to look up at me in surprise. 

“ I didn’t say I wouldn’t tell you,” I whisper low. “Just not here.” I point back toward the holding cell with my other paw. “Not after that.”

Judy nods, looking down at our paws, and I let go. “I need some fresh air and maybe a walk.” 

“ Ok,” she says quietly, and walks beside me as we head out of the holding area. A couple of officers are poking at the door lock mechanism as we head out of the hold cell area. 

“ Blasted thing just went up in a puff of smoke. I buzzed them in and poof.” 

“ It just didn’t go poof George.”

I grin down at Judy, who just shakes her head at me, and shrug. My mirth is short lived however as the stifling atmosphere once again crushes it out of me. I don’t feel better until I am outside the main door and sunlight is warming the fur of my face. I look down to my side and notice that the rabbit isn’t there and look back through the main doors of the building to see her talking to Spots as she walks backward toward me. 

I can’t explain the odd sensation of how much better the sunlight makes me feel, yet hurts my eyes at the same time. I should probably invest in a nice pair of sunglasses; hell even corner store knock offs would probably improve my quality of living, but that can wait. For now I bask in the glory that is the sun. 

“ Ok Slick, what's the deal?” Judy asks almost as soon as she walks through the door. “You honestly look like you’ve seen a ghost, and judging by how unphased you were with Craig I get the impression that wouldn't bother you nearly as much so spill.”

I look across the street and see the mockery that is the watering hole park. The old watering hole is where the city was founded, but now it’s long since been filled in and in its place stands a concrete and steel fountain. I just shake my head and start down the stairs. I severely need a cup of coffee and thankfully there is a cart not too far away.

We start to walk, and the farther away we get from that kid the better I feel. I’m not sure if Carrots has a frame of reference for what I feel at this very moment but she is going to want answers and I'm not supposed to give them. But I will, because she needs to know. 

“ Nick?” Judy asks again as we near the coffee cart. 

“ Just a moment Fluff,” I say before getting a large black cup of coffee in a cheap styrofoam cup from the vendor. I take a sip as we cross the street toward the park. I can tell the rabbit’s patience with me is running out as I find a bench near the fountain. Foot traffic this morning in the park is light, which is surprising seeing as how this is one of the biggest tourist attractions of the city. Come see the watering hole where predator and prey started to work together! 

I look to her as she sits down onto the bench beside me. I sigh and look back toward the fountain. 

“ I swear, if this was all for a cup of coffee….” she starts threateningly.

“ Judy,” I start, and look over at her. “I need a promise from you. What I'm about to tell you is typically only revealed to wizards once they finish their apprenticeships, once they actually join the White Council. This cannot under any circumstances leave you and me; it cannot end up in a report to Chief Bogo and it cannot be told to anyone ever.”

Her eyes are huge and she vibrates, whether from excitement or fear I cannot tell. “Ok, I promise Nick; it will never leave my lips.”

I nod and look back toward the fountain. “Fluff, there are things not of this world that are trying to break into it,” I start.

“ Like demons?”

“ Worse. At least demons, while they don't belong here, are of this world.” I shake my head. “These things make demons look like a minor infestation of fleas Fluff, and that kid in there, he spoke of them. And in Latin no less.” I look down at her. “Judy, only the Vatican and wizards Latin anymore. It's a dead language; it’s not something they teach in school these days.”

“ Oh…” She looks toward the fountain. “So the stuff works?”

“ Maybe, but he saw me, he knew what I am, he spoke of the Others and….” I trail off. 

“ Of what?” 

“ Death,” I say quietly and I leave it at that for the time being. I mean, just how do you tell someone that they will abandon you when you need them the most? Better that I don't say anything at all, so I just turn and close my eyes as the sunlight warms my face. 


	5. Chapter 4

#  Chapter 4

Twenty minutes later I'm sitting at my desk inside the ZPD printouts of the various samples of Third Eye spread out across my desk. Some of the chemical compounds differ between the samples but two constants remain between all of them: extract of midnicapum holicithias, or nighthowler, and this unknown substance. I'm no closer to understanding how this stuff is made than before we went to the park. I’m likely not going to understand it without a sample and some time in my lab and honestly, I'm not sure I want to know how this stuff is made

My eyes move from the printouts to the rabbit across the room from me. Every so often she types rapidly on her keyboard then makes notes in her  notebook . She had sat with me out in the park for far longer than I expected and hadn’t tried to push or pry into why I needed to go out there. She’s far kinder to me that I would have expected a few short weeks ago. “ _ You will die cold broken and alone,”  _ I hear briefly before shaking my head to clear it. 

“ What ya working on Fluff?” I ask after a few moments.”I’m not making any headway at all on these chemical make ups.” 

“ Well I put an APB out on Ed, but until he’s found that's a dead end.” She glances over at me and then back at her computer screen. “But I might have us a lead; we’ll need to get Chief Bogo to sign off on it though, and maybe one other mammal.”

“ Who’s the other mammal that would need to sign off on it?” 

“ Their mother.” I raise an eyebrow at that. “Come on Slick,” she says happily as she slides out of her seat. “We got some police work to do!”

I shrug as I stand and follow her out of our office by the boiler, stuffing my paws into my pockets. The trip back through the building is relatively quick and unremarkable outside of a wave from Clawhauser when we enter the lobby. Eventually we end up outside Chief Bogo’s office. 

“ ENTER!” comes the Buffalo’s bellow before Judy’s knuckles even rap on his door. She hops up and grabs the door handle, pushing the door open.

“ Hopps.” Bogo’s eyes turn toward me. “Wilde. I hope you have an update for me.”

“ Not yet Chief, but I think I have us a lead we can use,” Judy says as she walks over to an oversized chair in front of Bogo’s desk and climbs up into it. I shut the door behind me and walk over to stand beside the chair, only to have her tug on my shirt to get my attention and pat the chair beside her. I shrug and climb up into it to sit beside the rabbit. 

“ Let’s hear it then.” Bogo turns his attention fully to Judy. 

“ This morning a Jaxon Ringtail was picked up outside of Forest Lake High School on possession with intent to distribute charges.” She flips open her  notebook . “ He’s actually just a dumb kid; the amount of nip on him really does make him a small fish.” 

“ And?” The irritation in the cape buffalo’s voice is clearly present. 

“ If we offer him a deal where he gets probation for giving up his dealer we can then use that to track back to the distributor and then maybe to whoever is making Third Eye.” Judy explains. “I really don’t think we want this kid going into the system Chief, not when he might still be able to turn his life around.”

He turns his attention back to me. “What do you think?” 

“ To be perfectly honest Chief, I’m no closer to figuring out how Third Eye is made than I was outside the club this morning. I know it takes huge amounts of energy to make, but I can’t tell you how they’re channeling it or anything else.” I shrug. “If Car...Officer Hopps thinks this’ll help us find them faster then I think we should pursue it.”

Bogo nods and looks between us. “The DA will probably go for it, but you will need to speak to his parents.”

“ She’s already on her way down; Officer Fangmeyer called her about 40 minutes ago.”

Bogo’s nostrils flare as he snorts. “Get them to go for it and I will work on the DA; but if they refuse then let them know that we will be forced to throw the entire weight of the law at him.”

Judy nods and starts to slide out of the chair. “Furthermore  _ wizard,”  _ he starts as he turns his gaze to me, “you need to bring in results; so far I have little to show for my investment into you.” 

“ Chief…” Judy starts.

“ Quiet!” Bogo barks at her before turning his ire once again in my direction. “At 0342 this morning Mayor Lionheart’s daughter was picked up and transported to the Cliffside Addiction Treatment Center. Now I have him breathing down my neck along with a group from the foreign embassy wanting answers into the murder of Clare Bonire and the only thing I have from you is that you don't know how its made!” 

“ Chief!” Judy tries to interrupt once again.

I glare up at Chief Buffalo Butt; the lights in the room flicker slightly and the light of his computer monitor flickers and sticks to an eerie dark red. “You want answers?” I ask. “Fine! I need a sample and permission to take it to my lab.”

“ And just where is your lab?” Bogo almost growls at me.

“ He… he doesn’t have to answer that,” Judy cuts in drawing the Chief’s attention back to her. “Paragraph 3 Subsection 42 Tab B of his employment NDA states that we cannot ask him to divulge secrets to his trade.”

I cannot help the smug smile that slides over my face as Bogo glares at her.

“ Fine,” he says, his jaws moving as if he’s grinding something distasteful to a pulp. “But,” he pauses as he looks toward me, “after this morning Officer Hopps will go with you to observe whatever it is you do.”

“ But … ” I start.

“ No buts or you don't leave this building with that sample and you’ll end up in holding with the rest of the junkies.”

I glance down at the rabbit beside me as she looks from myself to the buffalo and back. “Fine, Officer Hopps can observe.”

“ No,” Judy says sternly.

“ What?” Bogo’s baleful gaze and ire turn to the rabbit.

“ I said no.” The steel in her voice draws even my surprised look toward her. “I was told by someone that seems very wise that a wizard guards two things closely: friendships and secrets. If Nick wants to take me to his lab then fine, but I don't want it to be due to pressure from our boss.”

I can see Bogo gearing up for some mad bellowing and I look to the rabbit again. “It’s fine,” I interject. “I trust her.” 

Bogo snorts at us, his breath strong enough to rustle the paperwork on his desk. “Now that's settled I’ll send the release form for half of what we got from Clare Bonire’s murder scene this morning.” 

I nod and slide out of the chair. I can hear the light thump Judy makes as she makes to follow me. 

“ Wilde,” the rare almost apologetic tone of Bogo’s voice forces me to pause and turn my head to regard the buffalo out of the corner of my eye, “the only reason I want her there is as a safeguard. The last thing we need is for you to go on a rampage through the city.”

I roll my eyes as I open the door. “Thanks Uncle Bogo, but I'm a big tod and can take care of myself.”

“ Can it Wilde!” Bogo bellows at me as I walk out the door and stuff my paws back into my pocket. I can hear Chief Bogo talking with Carrots behind me but I’m not listening. Honestly, he could be telling her I'm fired and I'm not even sure I would care. The lights above me each wink out in succession as I pass under them; in some cases they let out a satisfying pop, and in others they make an electrical buzz then just cease to work. Being called a junkie before I’ve even done anything is more than mildly irritating. 

My magic must have taken out more than just the lights in the hallway, as I soon hear shouts and questions about the network being down. Normally this would amuse me, but today not so much. My ears swivel at the sound of pattering footsteps behind me as I approach the stairs. 

“ Nick, wait!” Judy shouts from down the hall. 

I pause at the top of the stairs for a moment, letting her catch up before I start down them. One of the lights pops in a shower of sparks as we pass by it. 

“ Nick stop.” I can hear the concern in her voice. “Please calm down.” 

I spin around and glare at her. She is two steps behind me so we’re almost on eye level. “Calm down? I’ve been accused twice this morning of being a junkie.” I hold up two fingers between us. “The first time I can almost understand,since it was out of concern, but that?” I point back up the stairs. “I haven’t even done anything. Mammal Resources took enough blood, urine, and fur samples to be sure of it!” 

“ I’m sorry.” The sudden apology cuts into my tirade. “I’m sorry, I should have never said what I did. It’s just that….” She looks away and her shoulders sag slightly. “Cotton loves you. You’re our friend and you've been so kind.” She looks up at me and adds, “I was scared for you. But I should have trusted you, so I’m sorry.”

My anger deflates just a bit as I look at her. It doesn't fully go away mind you, but maybe it's now lessened enough that I can walk around without causing property damage. “Me too,” I say softly as she smiles at me and I shake my head, sighing. “Come on, that kit’s mother is probably here by now.”

The kid’s mother is waiting for us when we reach to lobby. She is laughing at something Clawhauser has said to her as we reach the bottom of the stairs. She stands just a little bit taller than Judy, with light grey fur and dark brown spots on her triangle shaped ears and down her arms. The six rings around her long tail are the same shade as her spots. She is wearing a white blouse, a short comfortable skirt, and an apron; she’s obviously came from work. 

“ Miss Ringtail?” Judy asks as we approach. 

“ Ummm, yes?” I watch as her eyes dart nervously between Judy and myself.

“ I’m Officer Judy Hopps and this is my partner Mr. Nick Wilde.”

“ Umm, please, call me Samantha,” Samantha introduces herself. “Just what has my son gotten himself into now?”

“ Ma’am would you please come with us to our office? We have much to discuss.” I’m a little taken back by Fluff’s down to business tone; she typically speaks a little more kindly, but considering the morning we’ve had I think its understandable. 

“ Is my son ok?”

“ He’s fine ma’am.” Her tone lightens just a bit. “He’s currently in an interview room; we just need to talk to you first before we let you see him.” 

“ Okay…”

I fall into step behind them as Judy leads us down to our office in the basement. I can see the apprehension on the feline’s features ramp up as we descend the stairs. The nervous twitch of her tail and the near constant rotation of her ears are very telling. 

“ So what is this about?” Samantha asks as she sits down in a comfortable chair beside Judy’s desk.

“ Your son was picked up this morning for dealing nip outside of Forest Lake High School.” I watch from across the room as I lean against my desk and cross arms across my chest. I watch the range of emotions that rapidly flash across her face. 

“ But Jaxon wouldn't….”

“ Ma’am, he was caught by campus security and when officers arrived on the scene they found a small amount of nip and another substance in his backpack.”

“ Jaxon….” She sighs and closes her eyes. “He's gotten in trouble for fighting since his father left us, but I never thought…..” Her shoulders sag a bit. “I’m sorry officers; how much is the fine going to be?”

“ Ma’am, this is more serious than a fine,” Judy says. “But provided your son helps us AND abides by a probation deal he will walk away from this with a clean record.”

“ Really?” I watch as hope springs back into the feline’s eyes. “Just what can Jaxon help you with?” 

“ We need to know who he’s dealing for; we’re trying to track a new street drug called Third Eye.” 

Samantha looks generally confused for a moment. “Blue?” I watch a range of emotions cross her face.. “Jaxon would never get….. when I get my paws on that boy … ” she growls.

“ Uhhh Mrs. RIngtail?” 

She sighs again as she clenches her fists. “I’m fine…. I’m sorry officers.” She relaxes. “I’ve tried and tried to get him to understand that the path he’s on isn't good, but he just shrugs me off. He’s at that age where he thinks he knows everything.”

“ Trust me ma’am, I understand; I’ve watched my parents deal with many of my brothers and sisters going through the same thing, and I dread the day my kit starts it as well.” I hear Fluff’s voice change to something much kinder than the down to business tone she’s been using up to this point.

I watch as Samantha smiles at Judy. “I pray you have an easier time of it Officer.”

Judy smiles. “Thank you, but I think this time might be different for Jaxon.”

“ How so?”

“ He’s going to have to answer to a probation officer. That officer will be very heavily involved in Jaxon’s life for the term of his probation.”

“ And how long would that be?” 

“ At least a year.”

She nods. “Ok then, if you think that will help Jaxon….”

“ All we can do is try ma’am, but Jaxon has to do the work.” 

I can tell Samantha seems skeptical but doesn't see any other options. “Can I see my son now?” 

Judy stands and walks over to our office door, opening it for her. “He’s upstairs in interview room three,” she informs us as we leave the office. Watching Fluff do cop stuff has been semi interesting to me and it hammers one thing home. She is a good cop; maybe not so much a good meter maid, but since she’d been on that detail for months, I can kind of understand her frustration with it.

I follow the pair quietly, not because I feel that I have anything worthwhile to add to the situation, but more out of a burning curiosity to find out how this is going to unfold. Besides, I kind of want to see how she'll get us the information we need. The more I watch and interact with her the more I come to understand that there are more than one side to her. There is Officer Hopps, who seems to be a no nonsense force of nature but still has a soft spot for a kid in trouble. Then there is Judy herself, the rabbit that’s left after she clocks out; sometimes there’s some overlap, but for the most part that rabbit is… something. Then there is Mama Bun, a loving, sweet, and nurturing figure that somehow trusts me with her kit. 

I’m pulled from my thoughts by the sudden exclamation of Samantha Ringtail. “Jaxon Fredrick Ringtail!” she shouts upon entering the interview room. I never knew my mother, but I truly don't think you need to to recognize that tone of voice. It screams that you’re screwed no matter what you say or do. “You have a lot of explaining to do young man! “

“ Mom!” the youngster exclaims from his seat paw cuffed to the table. “Mom I can explain…”

“If you’ve been  dealing Blue, there is nothing to explain,” She says snidely. “I’ve raised you better than that Jaxon; fighting I could almost understand but dealing Blue?” she growls at her son as I lean against the wall by the door watching the little drama play out. 

“ Mom…”

“ Don't ‘Mom’ me!” she cuts him off. “Dealing Blue!” She slams her paws against the metal of the tabletop. “After little Angie Clawson ended up in the hospital because of it? You gave it to her didn’t you?” 

“ No!” Jaxon exclaims. “I...I...I always flushed it, I just hadn’t had a chance to yet … ” 

“ Why Jaxon? I work long hours, I provide for you, I even got you that console you wanted so badly, so why?”

“ I’m sorry Mom.” Jaxon looks down at his paws as I look to Judy ,who just sits down in one of the chairs on this side of the table and waits. “I made a stupid bet. The first one I won and I got you that necklace for Mother’s Day, and your birthday is coming up and…”

“ Jaxon….” his mother says softly.

“ I just wanted to give you something nice and I screwed up. I didn’t have the money to pay up so….. they were going to come take it from you if I didn’t work for them.” 

“ What was the bet?” Judy asks, speaking up for the first time. 

“ I bet $500 that I could beat a guy in a fight,” Jaxon answers, looking at Judy for the first time, then his mom, and back down at the table. “But they pulled a ringer on me and switched the guy at the last moment.”

“ Was that the night you came home beaten half to death?” Samantha asks, and Jaxon nods. 

“ Most of that was to convince me to deal for them at the high school…” 

“ Who?” I watch as Judy makes notes in her  notebook .

I watch the kid as he looks at Judy again and then his mom. I can tell he’s torn about giving out that information. 

“ Jaxon…” his mother starts.

“ Woolter.”

“ That creepy looking sheep?” Samantha asks.

“ Yeah him… he told me he had a way for me to make some easy money….” He shrugs. “Said he heard I could fight…..”

“ Is Woolter his first name or last name?” Judy asks.

“ I dunno, just know he answers by it. I meet him at a warehouse down by the docks early every few days and he gives me Nip and Blue to sell.”

“ What’s the address of this warehouse?” Judy looks up from her  notebook . 

“ 45th and Dockside, number 743.” 

“ Anything else you can tell us?”

“ Well…” Jaxon looks from his mom, to Judy, then to me. 

“ Jaxon….” his mother starts in a warning tone.

“ The place smells strange.”

“ Strange how?” I ask, speaking up for the first time.

“ Well, kinda like rotten eggs and burnt electrical stuff.” Judy shoots me a look and I shrug. That could be any number of things, or it could be the magic that is being used to make Third Eye. I frown as I start to think about it. Rotten eggs very well could be from sulfur or some other process going on in the building. But magically, sulfur is almost always a sign of some of the stronger demons.

The sound of paw cuffs clinking pulls me from my thoughts. “Did you smell ash?” I ask. 

I watch as the kid looks thoughtful for a moment. “Maybe? There were a lot of conflicting smells; rotten eggs was the strongest but there might have been the smell of something burning. The rest smelled…..” 

“ Smelled like what?” I’m not really sure I want to know, but at this moment I need to. 

“ Well, like rotten food that's been left in the sun too long, ya know?” he asks as he searches for words to describe what he smelled. 

“ I think I get the idea. Thank you.” I was right, I didn't like what the kid had said. I frown as I stuff my paws in my pockets and walk out before the rest of the mammals. 

“ A probation officer will be contacting you in a few days,” I can hear Judy explaining just before the door shuts behind me. 

My mind is reeling; there are a lot of things that could smell like rotten eggs and ash, but it can also be a tell tell sign of hellfire and brimstone, and if that’s what the smell is there’s almost assuredly a greater demon somewhere nearby, or maybe a garbage heap on fire. This only brings me to a question that has been slowly gnawing at me since putting Memnoth down: just what is the connection between a Demon  Craig Furgonson and Judy Hopps and more importantly, why?

My thoughts whirlpool in my head as my paws take me back to Carrots’ and I’s office. I pull open one of my desk drawers and pull out the ZPD  notebook inside. Carrots got me this  notebook from one of the supply closets; it’s meant for a larger mammal so it won’t fit inside one of my pockets, which suits me just fine. It’s dark blue with a gold police shield embossed on the front and actually bound with a binding instead of a cheap metal spiral. 

The first few pages are doodles mixed in with some magical formula that had come to me in a cyber security class. Yeah I can’t believe they made me take that class either as I can’t even touch a computer let alone use the internet, but I digress. 

On the first clean sheet of paper I draw out the concentric design of the summoning circle that was used in the forest. Throughout the design I place smaller circles to represent the locations of the graves, making sure to mark the place where Emmitt Otterton was placed as well as the center with question marks. I also draw out the runes along the outer edge. Some of the runes I know; they either act as a magical power capacitor or a shunt of some sort. Others are completely alien to me and I know I’ll need to speak to Ben about them. My mind reels a bit from the memories of the vileness out in the forest, but I power through until I have as perfect of a recreation of the circle in the forest as possible. 

I make notes along the bottom edge of the page about Craig Furgonson jumping into the pit in the center and Memnoth possessing him and the possibility of something truly evil coming through with or dragging Memnoth kicking and screaming into this world. 

I move over to the next page and stare at it for just a moment before fishing around on my desk for the lab results from the sample of Third Eye this morning. I write out lab’s findings about the drug’s components and then write out what I expect to be contained in the magical portion of the drug as well as my suspicions for how it is made. 

I look over my work and sigh, happy that I wrote it all in Latin. The last thing I need is some poor kid to get their paws on this in a few hundred years and summon some evil to the mortal plane because I’m careless. I stare at this information before adding the details about the warehouse and the smell of sulfur and ash; again this could be a false lead but the only way we can be sure is to check it out..

The arrival of Judy sometime later pulls me out of my thoughts. “There you are Nick!” she says excitedly. “I've been looking all over for you.” 

“ Sorry Fluff but I had some things on my mind.”

“ I could tell. What was the deal with asking about ash?”

“ It could be nothing,” I shrug. 

She eyes me. “Or?” 

“ Or it could be a sign of a greater demon. Sulfur and ash can be signs of hellfire and brimstone.”

“ Oh, like….”

“ Worse.” 

She nods. “I gave the address he gave us to Chief Bogo; he’s working on getting us a search warrant.” She holds up a baggie full of blue powder. “I also got our sample from lock up so you ready to go to your lab?”

I can see she’s excited to go. Her ears are ramrod straight and she’s near vibrating with excitement. I wonder how excited she’ll be once she realizes that she’s been sleeping above it for at least what…. two, maybe three, weeks now?

I frown slightly at that thought as I stand and walk with Carrots. Has it really been that long since the fight with Memnoth? The routine with Judy and Cotton has become almost second nature to me now, almost as if they’ve always been a part of my life. A part of me isn’t all that surprised that another part really doesn't want to think about it. 

We step out of the Precinct One building and start walking the familiar path home. I'm sure she notices but doesn't say anything about it. I mean, I'm sure she’s noticed how HEC, Precinct One and my home are almost in a straight line with each other. It’s almost as if there’s some divine intervention at work, but that again is something I don’t want to think about.

“ Why are we here?” Her question pulls me from my thoughts as we round the corner and enter the alleyway to my home. 

A smug grin spreads across my face. “You wanted to go to my lab.”

Her foot thumps rapidly as I unlock the door and hold it open for her. She doesn't seem mad; a tad bit impatient maybe, but not mad. At least I don’t think she’s mad; after all she did just fight for my right to have my “trade secrets” as she called them. 

Neither of us says a word as we enter the apartment and I snap my fingers to light the candles in the main room. I walk past the couch and chair where the three of us have spent some very enjoyable hours reading or playing board games. Then I turn and look at her as I reach down to pull back the layered carpet and rugs in the far unused corner of the room. Her nose is twitching as she looks from me, to the trap door, and back again. 

“ Judy,” her eyes dart to me as I pull open the trap door and snap my fingers to light up the lab below, “there are many things in my lab, much of which, while not being necessarily illegal to own, might be frowned upon by law enforcement.” 

Her eyes soften as she nods her understanding. “Nick…” 

“ On top of that there are many…...dangerous things down there, so please don’t touch anything.” 

“ I’m a farm girl Nick. My father and like minded siblings have a workshop.” She smiles at me. “There’s even a still or two on the farm. I wouldn’t turn them in and I won't turn you in either.”

“ Thank you.” I feel a sudden weight lifted from my shoulders. “I have one more thing to tell you before we go down.” 

“ What?”

I gather my thoughts. “I have a priceless artifact; he’s…” I shrug, “ … eccentric, but he holds the knowledge of countless magic users before me.”

“So he’s an  encyclopedia?” 

“ Of sorts I suppose.” It’s honestly the best description for Ben, but we shall see how she reacts.

“ Anything else?” 

“ No.” I wave a paw toward the door. “After you.”

I watch as she walks over and descends the ladder. There is no hesitancy, only trust; my anxiety over bringing her here is lightened even further. I follow her as soon as she gets down the ladder. 

“ Ben, wake up; we have a guest,” I say as we approach my work bench.

“ A guest?” Ben purrs as the blue flames light in the heavily runed skull’s eye sockets. “How delightful.”

“ Judy, meet Ben.” I wave my paw to the skull. “Ben this is…”

“ Officer Judy Hopps.” I swear the skull grins. “Nick has told me so much about you. All good things I assure you.”

“ Oh really?” I look down at Judy as she eyes the skull. Her nose is twitching slightly, but other than that she seems at ease.

“ I would nod if I had the facilities to accomplish it, but let me assure you Nick is…..” My eyes turn back toward the skull. “Quite smitten.”

“ Oh really?” I can hear the curiosity in her voice. This is getting way out of paw; I need to move this back toward our original purpose in being here and fast.

“ Ben, we need help figuring out the make up of this…” I look to Judy, who pulls the small baggie out of her pocket and paws it to me. The call of the power contained in it isn't as bad as it had been in the dumpster. Maybe it’s because I'm prepared for it, or maybe it’s lost some of its draw, I'm not sure which; either way I sit the sample down onto the work bench and sit down on the long bench in front of it. 

A blue light shines on the baggie for a moment. “Interesting…” the skull purrs. “It's been tainted a bit by many paws; where did you get this?”

“ We found it in the paw of a dead Mephitis stripper.” I glance down at Judy.

“ Mmmmm, he takes you to such delightful places doesn't he?”

“ Well, this is more my fault than his since I got him the job at the ZPD.”

“ You should hang onto this one Nick, she took you to a strip club.” 

I roll my eyes. “What can you tell us about the stuff?” 

“ I assume you’re more worried about the bit that shouldn't be there.”

“ Worried is an understatement Ben.” I flip open the notebook on my workbench and suddenly wish I had my one from work. “I think I worked out how it could be made but the power requirements would be huge.”

“ Yes, if you used creation magic to make this the power requirements would be astronomical.” Ben’s eyes flash momentarily. “But there would be an easier way…..”

“ Easier how?” I can hear the concern in Judy’s voice as she asks the question.

“ Well creation magic is hard due to its energy requirements, but transmutation, or converting one energy into another, is quite simple. The bindings to get what you want would be much harder and extremely complex, but in theory it would work.”

“ So what sort of energy source could they use to make this?” 

I frown as I think about the rabbit’s question. “Souls,” I answer as I push the baggie a bit farther away.

“ Souls would work I guess, if you were willing to leave a pile of bodies. But there are other sources that would work as well.” 

“ Other sources?” Judy and I ask almost simultaneously. We look at each other then back at the skull. 

“ So they’re, what, tapping into the power grid?” I can hear the incredulity in Judy’s voice. 

“ No, I’m sure by now you’re well aware of the effects of magic on electronics.”

Judy nods. “Very aware.” 

“ Well then there are other sources of electricity other than your fancy power plants.”

“ Lightning!” I shout with sudden realization. “But… you would need one hell of a capacitor loop for that to work.”

“ But it is doable; it would be highly unstable and prone to failure, but given enough strikes it would create that drug, and a lot of it.”

“ The weather walls…..” I look down at Fluff, my voicealmost a whisper. “They create a lot of static electricity, so they’re struck multiple times a day whether or not there’s an actual storm.” She looks up at me, her eyes wide. “I need to talk to Chief Bogo right now!” 

I watch her get up and scurry up the ladder as fast as she can and just a few seconds later hear the apartment door slam shut. 

“ You were looking at her tail. I don't blame you; she is kinda cute.” 

I glare at the skull. “Not the time Ben…”

“ It’s never going to be the right time; just go for it!” 

I roll my eyes. “So how would a capacitor loop like this work?” 

“ Gah! You’re about as fun as a wet towel. The loop would slow down the discharge of energy to make it usable and hopefully not burn out the rest of the loop.”

“ So it’ll need to be monitored?” 

“ Oh most definitely. Too long of a strike and it will burn out the runes for the capacitor loop; too short and it won't have enough power to fully complete the spell.” Ben’s eyes flash and scan over the open page of my notebook, scorching different runes, explanations, and what looks like an array and how to make it work.

I study the drawings for sometime. “With that you could power, say, a spell to hide a nice tower indefinitely.” I look at the skull. “What? Don't look at me like  t hat! A tower would be a vast step up from a shelf in a dingy basement.” I see his eyes shift toward the ladder. “Right now though you need to go follow your bunny.”

“ She's not my bunny.” I state flatly as I tear the page out of the notebook and fold it up before putting it in my pocket. I walk over to the ladder and start up it. 

“ Yet.” 

I pause to glare at the skull before continuing my way up the ladder. I kick the trap door shut and roll the carpet back over it. I walk over and collapse onto the couch, waiting for Fluff to come back. Last thing she needs is for me to go find her and blow up her phone. 

_ Yet.  _ The word echoes in my head with a finality that furrows my brow; the implications are very clear to me, and yet … I'm not sure if I’m irritated by it because I'm irritated by it or because I'm supposed to be irritated by it. I have long since given up hope of finding someone to share my life with. I mean, I’m a wizard, and that by definition means I can’t have very nice things. The last vixen that I attempted to bring into my world ended up in a convent in Eweurope. She ran and got as far away from me as she could. 

My ears perk up at a sound just outside of the door and I look towards it just as Judy walks back in. The look on her face is that of pure frustration. 

“ Ugggh!” she huffs as she starts to pace back and forth in front of the dormant fireplace. I watch her, trying to look like I’m not. 

“ I take it that wasn’t a very pleasant call?”

“ That's an understatement.” If looks could kill I would be a grease stain. She huffs again and slumps onto the couch beside me. “Bogo says they need city council approval to search the top of the weather walls. Which does make sense; it’s restricted and off limits.” 

I nod and stretch. “Sounds all the easier then to set something up there undisturbed.”

“ He said we should have teams up there searching by tomorrow.” She glances at me. “Hope you don't mind heights Slick; if something is found we’re going to have to go up to look at it.”

“ Shouldn't be a problem,” I chuff and grin as I shoot her a wink. “Besides, I'll have Super Bunny there with me.” 

She smiles at me. “Thanks for…” She looks away. “Trusting me today.”

I look toward the dormant fireplace. “You make it easy.”

“ Really?” I see her turn and look at me from the corner of my right eye and nod in response.

“ Can I ask a favor?” 

The question catches me off guard and I look down at her. There is no malice or anything on her face. “Sure.”

“ Will you put a lock on your lab please? It can be magical or otherwise; I just don't want Cotton to end up down there by mistake or accident.” She rests a paw on my arm. “You were right, I saw some things down there that are dangerous. I don’t know what you use them for, but I also don't know what half the tools in the farm’s woodworking shop are for, and that gets locked up as well.”

“ That makes sense; I’ll get it done.”

“ Thank you. Come on, we should go get Cotton. By the time we get there school will have let out, and Bogo gave us the rest of the afternoon off with how early we started this morning.”

The rest of the evening passes in relative calm and quiet. Well, as calm and quiet as a hyperactive four year old bunny can be. Seems it was someone’s birthday and their class had cupcakes. We let her run around the park to burn off excess energy, and then had dinner and homework, math. Can what they teach kids these days even be called math I wonder? But she's smart though, kinda like her mother. But to tell the truth I honestly can’t see any child of Judy’s not being an overachiever, I think it’s just in her blood. 

I look down at my handiwork on the trap door and stretch. The runes, while somewhat ornate, are still fairly simple but functional. Unlike my staff or my shield bracelet this is a lock, so functionality is the key. It’s keyed with a drop of my blood so it won’t open for anyone else. I’ll need to remember to talk to Fluff to find out if she wants to be added to it tomorrow. I pause at that thought; a few weeks ago I would have balked at the idea of adding her to anything, but now though? I look over to the bed with the sleeping rabbits and shake my head as I gather up my carving tools. I neatly place them in their hard plastic case and then roll the carpet back over the trap door. 

I stand and stretch my back popping in multiple spots from being hunched over the trap door and walk over to sink to quietly wash my paws. After drying my paws I walk over and stretch out onto the couch; lacing my paws behind my head I reach out with my will and snuff out all the candles, leaving just the low burning fire in the fireplace as the only light source.

I roll onto my side and curl up as much as possible, only to fall off of the couch and onto my paws and knees in the middle of a forest. I glance around, startled, as one moment I'm safe on the couch in my living room and the next I'm in a dense forest. I stand looking around as a breeze blows a scent into my nose. It’s faint and vaguely floral, mixed with lavender and earth and very familiar. I mean, you don't live with mammals for awhile without becoming familiar with how they smell. 

As I move through the forest following the scent I hear faint giggles close enough to be heard but far enough away to be teasing. I pick up my pace, ears rotating as I follow my nose, and the forest begins to darken and loom more menacingly around me. Faint threads of malice intertwined with hate slowly thicken between the trunks of the trees.

“ NOOOOO!” My heart stops and I sprint toward the sound, the anguish in the scream spurring me forward faster. Branches of the trees give way to brambles and thorns rip and tear at my clothing and fur but I'm undeterred. 

“ Wwwwhhyy?” The sound of anguish causes a deep unsettling ache to start in my chest as brambles give way to what feels claws as I struggle and fight my way forward. I burst clear into what appears to be a clearing, but instead of grass and flowers it’s made of concrete and steel. 

I can see what seems to be the familiar form of a certain rabbit kneeling at the far end of the clearing. Her shoulders hunch and drop with clear sounds of anguish and pain as her paws cover her face. 

“ Fluff?” I start across the clearing; a cold wind whips across, chilling me to the bone, but still I move toward her. As I get closer details become more clear; it’s definitely Judy but the ears are shaped wrong, she's a little too big, and the fur is off. She ignores me, or maybe she didn’t hear me, I don't know which. “Judy?”

She turns her head and instead of the soft features I have come to know I am met instead with a near mad grinning visage of a fox. His blue grey eyes are boring into me his shoulders are moving not in anguish but mirth, like he’s laughing at me. 

“ You shall die…” he starts as he stands taking a step toward me, causing me to pull back my paw from where it was about to touch his shoulder, “ … cold and ALONE!” At the word “alone” I’m hit hard in the side and catapulted toward the edge of the clearing. I expect to land back in the forest but I don’t; as the edge of the clearing slips past I start to tumble tail over head through the air, my arms flailing in panic as I try to grab the wall that is rushing past me. I see the end of my fall nearing; even though the space under me is nothing but darkness I know that this is it, this is how I end cold broken and alone. 

I feel a small paw grab my shoulder and shake me. “Wake up Nick!” 

My eyes shoot open and I sit half way up on the couch, only to flop back down again. I feel like my heart is trying to rip its way out of my chest. I grab Judy’s paw, desperate at that moment for connection and to not feel alone. My eyes close and open as I try to make sense of where I am. My breathing is shaky and ragged but much too quick; I can feel my body shaking with adrenaline. The faint smell of ozone and brunt electronics wafts from somewhere.

“ It’s ok, I got you; just breathe.” The words are kind and softly spoken and she doesn’t try to pull away. 

It takes a few moments but slowly my breathing evens out. I move to sit up but a firm paw on my chest stops me and I look up at her as she sits down on the edge of the couch. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you.” My throat feels raw.

“Mama,  Mama! Is Mr. Nick ok?” Great, I woke both of them.

She looks at me and I nod. “Yes, he’ll be ok; it was just a bad dream, honey.” A brief pause and she adds. “Go back to sleep.”

I relax as the adrenaline slowly leaves my system. She looks down at me, and the look on her face isn’t one of pity or malice. It’s something I haven't seen on the face of another mammal in my company in a long time: honest caring. I swallow nervously as the emotions are still raw.

“ Would you like a drink?” Simple question, and even though I’ve disturbed the sleep of both her and her kit, she’s not angry with me.

“ Please.” It almost comes out as a question, and I’m loath to let her paw go as she gets up and walks across the room. I sit up and run my paws across my face, it’s wet with both sweat and tears. She returns seconds later with a pair of ice cold bottles of water and paws me one. 

She sits down on the couch close beside me. Maybe it's just my raw emotional state and not overly wanting to be alone, but I'm acutely aware of just how close she is. The water is like a balm to my raw throat. “Thank you.”

“ What was it about?” 

I tense and look toward her before looking back toward the floor.

“ Nick, you screamed my name. My pager all but exploded.” She touches my back gently and again I don’t feel alone.

“ It sticks with me.” My voice is barely above a whisper.

“ What does?” I can hear the concern in her voice.

“ The magic stuff,” I sigh. “I can see it with my wizard sight.” I chuff softly. “The new age witches call it their third eye.”

“ Like the drug?”

“ Kinda, maybe, I dunno, just without the….” I wave my paw.

“ The crazy?” I nod as that seems to be as accurate a description as any.

“ I can see magic, things affected by magic, through magical camouflage with it, wards, any number things,” I explain.

“ Sounds.....useful.” 

“ It can be. But anything I see with it I remember with 100% clarity and I’ll never forget it.”

“ Oh…..”

“ I saw bits and pieces of the clearing.” I look over at her. “That wasn’t a pleasant experience.”

“ That's not all is it?” 

I shake my head. “Remember the fox this morning?” 

“ The crazy one that rattled you?” 

“ Yeah, him.” I look toward the fire. “When he spoke today it rang like prophecy, like he was passing judgment on me.”

“ What did he say?”

I hear the crazy drugged up fox in my head as I take a sip of the bottle of water.

“ That I’ll die alone, cold, and broken. That in my time of need my friends will abandon me.” I look at my paws; they are shaking slightly and I'm glad that the water level of the bottle is low enough that I'm not sloshing it around. The last thing I need right now is a mess.

“ Nick….”

“ In my dream I heard you scream. I came to something….a space made of concrete or stone; you were crying, or at least I thought it was you. When I got to you it was that fox, then I was hit by something and I fell.”

I feel my left arm pushed up and two smaller arms wrap around me. I look down and see Judy’s face pressed against my chest as she hugs me. I wrap the arm she pushed out of the way around her, feeling a steady warmth in my chest, and I close my eyes. 

“ You realize that he was drugged out of his mind, right?”

“ Yeah… I know.”

She pulls back and looks up at me. “We’ll talk more in the morning.” She looks toward the bed then up at me. “Come on,” she says, grabbing my paw as she gets up and slips off the couch. 

“ To where?” 

“ Bed; we still have work in the morning and I'm not letting you be alone after that.” She cuts me off as I start to protest. “The couch isn't big enough for two. Besides, the bed is bigger than what Cotton and I need.”

I look down at her and sit my bottle of water onto the side table. Any further protest I have dies, as I don't really want to be alone at the moment either and I can tell she’s not taking no as an answer. I let her lead me over to the bed before crawling up and over the lip of the drawer. I am very careful not to disturb Cotton as I lay against the far back wall. The bed is so much more comfortable than the couch, one of the few true luxuries that I own. My eyes close almost immediately, as I’m exhausted both physically and emotionally and it’s all starting to catch up with me. 

I can feel the bed shift as Judy climbs back up into it, and as she settles I hear Ben’s voice in my head again. “Yet.”


	6. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whats this? Opps I hit the post button early..... Enjoy!

## 

# Chapter 5

Sometime later as I awake I'm aware of three things. First, I'm on my stomach curled around something warm. Second, there’s a comfortable weight in the center of my back. Third is a warm scent of flowers and earth. I'm reluctant to open my eyes as the memories of the night before flood back. I shiver slightly despite the fact that I'm warm, comfortable, and content. 

I pause when what I am curled around moves and shifts. My eyes open in a mild state of panic, since pillows typically don't move. I don't see much, as the lip of the drawer that my bed rests in blocks most of the light from the low burning fire in the fireplace and my eyes are still adjusting. I lift my right paw to wipe at my eyes, only to be stopped as another paw pulls it back down. 

I become aware of another thing, the weight on my back is breathing. I shift ever so slightly and get comfortable again, not wishing to wake either of them yet knowing that soon we will have to start our day. I can only hope that I didn’t make a fool of myself at some point in the middle of the night and that whatever retribution that comes from this is light. I still can’t bring myself to break the moment and another thought follows:  _ Worth it. _

I mull that thought over in my mind for a few moments and have to agree that whatever retribution I have to pay for this one moment will be worth it. 

“ _ Yet.”  _ The word echoes in my skull worse than a gunshot in a canyon. It’s not something I want to think about or hope for. Hope for myself is a somewhat alien concept; being a wizard fox private investigator doesn't give one much room for those things. The best I’ve hoped to do for years is just survive. Do I now dare to let myself hope for something more? I dunno.

“ Nick?” The question is asked so softly that I just barely make it out.

“ Mmmm?” 

“ You’re…. purring.” 

That statement causes my eyes to pop open and my ears to lay flat against my head. “Sorry.” 

“ It’s…” the pause makes me wince ever so slightly, “ … okay. I take it you slept well?” 

“ Much better thank you.” 

“ Can you let me up please? I need to go to the bathroom.”

I lift my paw in response, flopping it over my muzzle and eyes as soon as I feel her leave the bed. Great, I’ve made a fool of myself. My ears perk up at the sound of the shower kicking on in the bathroom so at least I have a bit of time before I need to move. I feel the younger bunny roll over on my back and I try not to think about what might happen in the near future. Whatever it is, it will be what it will be.

“ Cotton…” My ears perk up once again; I must have fallen back asleep. “Time to get up.”

“ Idunnawanna…..” I can feel the smaller bunny try to snuggle deeper into my back.

“ Come on sweetie..” I lift my paw and crack open an eye to look up at Judy, who just grins at me. “I’m sure Mr. Nick would like to go the bathroom and get a shower before work, and you need breakfast so we can get you off to school, little miss.”

I feel the corners of my muzzle turn up in a smile in response to her grin. 

“ Will Mr. Nick walk wif us to school?” 

Judy grins down at me. “Well Mr. Nick, will you?”

“ Would love to, but I can't since I’m currently being somebunny's bed.”

“ Yay!” Cotton rolls over and wraps her arms around my neck. “Love you Mr. Nick!” she says before planting a kiss on my cheek and hopping off of the bed.

I smile warmly and stretch my back, popping in several locations. “Love you too Cottonball.”

“ You ok?” The sudden question makes me realize Judy hasn't followed her daughter.

“ Yeah; I feel pretty good.” 

“ Good.” She glances over her shoulder. “I’ll get your coffee made so you can go on and get in the shower.”

The walk from my apartment to HEC passes in a semi-uncomfortable awkwardness. I keep looking down at Judy, who would catch me looking at her just to make the both of us glance away. Cotton on the other paw is quite happily oblivious to our…. I’m not sure I would call it discomfort, but whatever it is it’s lost on her as she skips beside me happily holding onto the little finger of my right paw. 

We stop outside HEC, the lion rent-a-cop having long since decided I was no longer worth watching on a daily basis. Cotton tugs on my paw before holding her paws up to me. The meaning isn't lost on me as I kneel down and she wraps her arms around my neck. “Have a good day at work Mr. Nick!” 

I smile and hug her back. “Have a good day at school Cotton.” Almost as fast as the hug started it was over and I'm watching her walk into school beside her mom. I lean against the stonework of the fence and take a sip of my coffee from the travel mug that had been pressed into my paws this morning after my shower. I frown slightly looking at the cup; I don't even remember buying the thing. Itake another sip of the coffee. It's made just about the same way I typically make it for myself. Strong, no creamer or sugar, just hot, bitter, and caffeinated. 

I’m pulled from my thoughts by a certain cheerful bunny returning. “Come on Slick, let’s go make the world a better place.”

I stuff my free paw into my pocket and take another sip of the coffee. I look down at Judy as we cross the street and head toward the precinct. Her ears are up straight but there’s a slight twitch in one and she doesn't seem as relaxed as she normally does. 

“ So ummmm about...uhh last night…..” She glances up at me and her ears immediately fall down her back. “I’m… look…..” Since when did speaking with this rabbit become so damn hard?

She waves her paw dismissively. “Don’t worry about it.” 

I look down at her surprised. “You’re sure… I mean I….I didn’t mean….?”

“ Yeah it's fine.” I frown as she tries to appear relaxed. “Come on, lotsa work today; Bogo probably has a search warrant for that warehouse for us already and we need to be ready if the search teams find anything on the weather walls.”

I chuff slightly as I walk beside her. I have torched a lot of things in my life but this is a first for me, torching a friendship in my sleep. Maybe it wasn’t worth it after all; I expected… well, I don't know what I expected, but this really isn’t it. But if she doesn’t want to talk about it I can't force her. Or maybe I didn’t torch it after all; maybe she's just trying to spare my feelings over something I did in my sleep that I had no control over. Either way the rest of the walk into the office passes in silence between us. 

We walk into the atrium of the precinct to find a pawful of officers milling about. Maybe it’s just my imagination, but I can feel their eyes on us as we walk past heading for the stairs. 

“ Hey guys!” Clawhauser greets us as we near the front desk. “Ummm, what’s wrong?” His eyes dart between us.

“ Wrong?” Judy asks.

“ Nothings wrong,” I add.

“ U mmm … ok, well,, if you say so.” I fight hard to keep from rolling my eyes at the chubby cheetah. “The Chief wants you two upstairs right now.”

“ Thanks Clawhauser; come on Nick!” I pick up my pace and follow the rabbit, who bounds up the stairs two at a time. I’m glad for the extra physical training as we make it to the top of the stairs. The change in Judy is astronomical from when we walked into the build until now. Before her ears were down, and now they are ramrod straight; she’s almost vibrating with excitement as we make our way from the top of the stairs toward the chief's office. 

Judy slows just a bit as the Chief's door suddenly opens. “Hopps, Wilde get in here.” The Chief's gruff voice nearly echoes down the hall. He leaves the door open as he turns back into the office. 

“ Judge Greenfield signed and returned the search warrant for the warehouse you requested. I have three units downstairs waiting,” Bogo starts as soon as we enter the office.

“ And the city council on searching the weather walls?” 

“ They are undecided if the threat is real enough yet to allow search parties up there.”

I frown as I ask. “What about helicopters?” Bogo snorts and looks at me like I’ve grown a second head.

“Nick, the weather walls are no fly zones below 5,000 feet; the turbulence makes it way too dangerous.” Judy looks up at me. “Besides, I highly doubt you want to go up in one of those.”

“ No, no I do not.” 

“ I’ll keep putting pressure on the council to allow search teams up there. In the meantime Wilde, what should we expect on a…” He waves his hoof at me.

“ In ways of magic?” I ask and shrug. “Not sure honestly. I doubt they’re actually making the stuff in the warehouse; the weather walls seem a much more likely place to do it. But regardless, I think it's safe to say your officers shouldn’t touch anything, no matter how innocent it looks.”

“ I will advise the officers. Officer Fangmeyer will take the lead on clearing the building and rounding up anyone inside.” Bogo turns his attention to Judy. “Hopps, I want you to take Mr. Wilde down to supply and get him outfitted with a Kevlar vest; be ready to go in twenty minutes.”

“ Yes, sir! Come on Nick, let’s get going.”

“ Oh gods Nick, this is so exciting!” she starts; if I thought the excited energy level coming off of the bunny was high before, now it’s near palpable. She hops a few steps in front of me and turns around walking backward.“Our first raid! This is what I always dreamed of as a kit!”

I smile as follow her back down stairs. I’m not sure exciting is the word that I would use for this, but it actually makes me a bit happier to see her semi-back to her normal self. Maybe I’m making a bigger deal out of waking up with her than I needed to? I try to push the thought from my head, as I have other things that require my attention at the moment. 

A few minutes later we’re standing in a room on the first floor. There are benches lining the walls so mammals can sit on them but for the most part it’s empty. The back wall of the room has a sliding window much like a drive through and rows of equipment racks can be seen beyond it. A bored looking, and by the grey of his muzzle, wolf is sitting behind the window looking at something on his computer. 

The wolf looks up at us as the door closes. “Stop,” he commands, his eyes locking on me. “Officer Hopps step forward, but your partner stays there; I have an important inventory due and the last thing I need is to start over because my systems locked up due to him being here.”

A smug grins slides across my face as I shrug down at Judy, who glances up at me just before walking up to the counter. 

“ Here is his vest.” He pushes a black vest through the window and then slaps down a piece of paper in front of her. “Sign here for it.”

After signing for it she lifts it off the counter and carries it to me. The vest is almost as large as she is, but she seems to carry it just fine. She hands it to me and looks me over. The vest is much heavier than it looks and I eye her with a new appreciation for her strength. 

“ Your shirt doesn't look loose enough for you to wear the vest under it so you'll need to wear it over it.” She turns it in my paws. “This is the front; you'll need to slip it over your head and then we’ll tighten the straps. You'll want it tight so  is the weight can be distributed better and not borne just by your shoulders.” 

I slip the vest over my head and let it settle on my shoulders. She’s right, I wouldn't last long if I had to wear this thing all day with it just hanging from my shoulders. I look down at the hard chest piece over what looks like blue spandex.

“ Yours is different.” 

“ I’m the smallest ZPD officer outside of Little Rodentia; they had to get creative on my uniform.” I nod as she starts to pull on some of the straps on the sides of the vest. “Can you breath and move ok?”

I take a deep breath, then twist my waist and move my arms back and forth across my chest; the vest is snug, but doesn’t seem to hinder my breath or movement.. “Yeah, well enough I guess.”

She nods and smacks the center of the vest. “Come on, we need to get going.”

The dock and warehouse district is one of the dirtiest places in the city and trust me, that is saying something. It has nothing to do with trash or anything; it's the feeling of greed that permeates it, along with a not so subtle undertone of lust since it butts up against the red light district there’s. The warehouses themselves are all more or less the same; maybe some have subtly different colors, but for the most part, the only way to distinguish one from another is the building numbers, or have three cop cars parked in front,, one of which has an irritated female tiger leaning against it.

Judy pulls the car beside Fangmeyer, who reaches down and turns off her radio as we pull up. I can’t help the satisfied smug grin that spreads across my face as I reach down and roll the window down with the manual crank. 

“ About time you two show up,” Fangmeyer says as she leans down and looks into our car. “We are ready to go, dispatch reports that the traffic cameras have shown half a dozen mammals entering the building but only three of them have left.”

“ Any sheep go in?” I hear Fluff ask.

“ Two and a goat are still in there,” Fangmeyer answers. “We’ll go on in; you’re in charge of our…..” she eyes me skeptically, “ … specialist. We’ve been briefed not to touch anything and will do our best to keep distributions to a minimum afterward; we’ll call CSI and see what they can make of the place.”

I can feel the excitement from the rabbit beside me drop a bit. “Ok,but Nick and I….”

“ He’s barely better than a civilian at this point; stay back and keep him out of trouble.” Fangmeyer cuts her off. “I’m not going to argue with you Officer Hopps; we roll in three.” She stands and walks away. I can see her in the mirror going to the other two cars to briefly chat with the mammals inside.

I glance over at Judy as I roll up the window. She's resting her head against the steering wheel. I can just make our her mumble of, “I am a real cop.”

“ You are a real cop.” 

She pauses and turns her head to look at me. “I, on the other paw, am not.” I look out the windshield. “It was your police work that got us here.”

She smiles ever so slightly. “Thanks Nick.”

I look over as Fangmeyer slams the driver side door of her cruiser shut and starts the engine. The row of cars behind her roar to life and pull out into the street, the traffic stopping as the emergency lights come to life.

Judy slams our car into gear and flips a switch on the dash, activating our own lights as we follow the other three cruisers.

My right paw grips the center console as the sudden acceleration of the car is accentuated by a mild squealing of the back tires and the sudden jolt of the cruiser’s suspension compressing from the gutter. The rest of the ride to the warehouse in question is fairly quick, mostly due to other drivers pulling over to get out of our way than any real speed. 

The speed at which the officers move as they position their cars to block exits from the warehouse parking lot is somewhat surprising. Fangmeyer and her partner, a wolf, are the first to the side door of the warehouse, followed quickly by a two more wolves, a bear, and a rhino who pulls out a rather large riot shield. Fangmeyer nods to the rhino, who charges the door with the shield held in front of him. My eyes widen as the rhino plows straight through the door, seemingly not even missing a stride.

I look over to Judy, who unbuckles her seat belt and opens her door; I unbuckle my own seat belt before sliding out of my own door. Shouts of “Police!” and “We have a search warrant!” can be heard from outside our cruiser. The speed and precision at which the officers execute the clearing of the building is somewhat surprising to me. Two of the wolves come out moments later carrying an obviously passed out goat between them and stuff him into the back of a cruiser. 

“ You two can go on in,” one of the wolves says as we approach. “There are two ovines still in there, but they’re having their rights read to them; we just needed to get Fainty McFaints here out of there.”

“ Come on Slick, let’s see what we found.” 

I nod as I follow her through the destroyed door and enter a brightly lit office. Money and small baggies of light blue powder are strewn around the place; actually, it looks like a tornado had blown through it rather than anything that had been remotely organized. I spot the discarded riot shield on top of the twisted wreckage of the door.

The draw of the powder is strong, but not nearly as strong as it had been the day before. Maybe the stuff in here isn't as pure, or maybe it’s something else. I look away and frown; there’s a wrongness that permeates the building. There is something massively wrong here, more wrong than the warehouse in Sahara Square. 

Other than the baggies, I don't feel like there’s anything else in the room that’s magical. 

I stuff my paws into my pockets as Judy lets out a low whistle. “That is a lot of Third Eye.” My eyes are drawn over to the little baggies in question as she moves over to shift through them. “Do these not look as blue to you?”

“ Maybe,” I answer, keeping my distance, not really wanting to be more tempted to pocket one of them than I already am. The feeling of power that radiates off of that mess is tempting. Like I should just rip them all open, pour them into a bathtub, and submerge myself in it; I can already catch just a faint whiff of it in the air. This is more than likely where the goat fainted if the mess on the floor is any indication. 

“ What the hell is this?” I hear a deep rumbling voice from deeper inside the warehouse. Judy looks up from the mess on the floor and we walk through a doorway in the back wall of the office. This one was shattered; instead of twisted metal it's been rendered into nothing more than splintered wood. 

The deeper portion of the warehouse holds long tables with lab equipment that looks like it’s used to mix various powders and liquids together. This place is obviously a step in the final production of Third Eye. One that I would love to study if it wasn’t for a more immediate problem.

The bright overhead lights flickers ominously, causing the room to be cast mostly in a deep red eerie glow emanating from a large circle carved into the concrete of the floor. The outmost reaches of the circle span well over 40 feet across. Runes flash and glow along the outer diameter. I can make out some of the runes, as they’re familiar to me; some are new, and others flash so quickly that I can’t make them out. In the center of circle stands the rhino officer with a look that attempts to say I didn’t do it, and under his right hoof isa rune that’s flashin more quickly than the rest. 

“ Nick?” Judy asks as I kneel down to study the circle. I tap a claw near the outer edge and instead of tapping my claw against concrete I hit some sort of epoxy. I glance nervously to Judy and back to the circle again. 

“ Rhinowitz, what did I tell you about touching shit?” Fangmeyer growls as she enters the room.

“ I didn’t touch nuffin,” the rhino rumbles. “I heard somethin over here so I came to check it out and this light show started.” I sniff and my eyes widen as I catch the first faint whiffs of sulfur and brimstone. 

I swear time slows to a crawl as multiple things happen all at once. First I push back away from the circle, turning as I scramble back. My right paw reaches out for Judy as I concentrate on the shield bracelet around my left wrist, picturing a dome over us, which pops into place and knocks Fangmeyer flat onto the floor but inside the protective dome of the shield. I pull Judy down and curl around her protectively.

Just as the shield pops into place the rhino lifts his right hoof and the world explodes into fire. All around the shield a roaring wall of fire engulfs everything. I can feel the shield weakening and pop a second into place as the raging inferno sears its way through the first shield. 

My shield bracelet starts to heat up; I can feel it start to sear into the skin of my left wrist as the shield starts to weaken again and I pop a third into place. I can feel my energy reserves starting to wane. I start to scream; the pain from the heat of the bracelet is just too much, as I'm obviously pushing it past what the simple trinket was originally designed for. 

The flames stop as quickly as they started. Except for my whimpers of pain from the heat of the bracelet searing itself into my skin, the world is silent. The third shield collapses and sound rushes back in. The screeching of car alarms can be heard along with the tinking of cooling super-heated metal. Somewhere in the distance something crashes to the ground. 

I’m shaking and gasping for breath . The putrid smell of hellfire and brimstone mixed with char and something I can’t quite identify fill my lungs. Judy pushes against me and I roll onto my back, uncurling from around her. The first thing I notice is the missing roof and how blue the sky is. I can vaguely hear the snapping crackle of what had to be secondary fires. 

Judy sits up and freezes as she looks around. “Sweet cheese and crackers…..” she says in a voice just above a whisper.

“ Rhinowitz?” Fangmeyer yells.

My left wrist throbs in time with my heartbeat, but I'm not even sure I have the strength left to cast the shunt spell. I look over to Judy, expecting to see a wall behind her, but it’s gone, and instead I'm looking past her and into the warehouse across the street. I roll to my right side and push myself up. 

I look down at my left wrist; most of the fur around it has been seared away, the flesh underneath a bright pink. The silver of the bracelet is a blackened mess. Two of the pendants look more like blackened shriveled raisins than shields; the third is tarnished and scorched, more than likely trash as well. The fourth is still bright silver and is the only one that can be salvaged. I gently turn the bracelet until I can see the clasp; while it’s not quite melted, it won’t open enough for me to be able to get it off. 

I look up and it's all I can do to keep my jaw from dropping. Most of the concrete pad that the warehouse had been built on is gone. All of it except for the five foot diameter circle in which Fangmeyer, Judy, and myself sat. The warehouse walls lay strewn about the streets and there is a hump behind us where the walls folded over some of the parked police cars. Now that I’m sitting up I can detect the sickening smell of burnt flesh fur and ash hanging in the air. In front of us, approximately where the center of the circle that caused this level of devastation, sat the charred remains of a rhino’s hoof. The blacked end of a tibia is sticking up with a bit of uniform flapping in the light breeze as a sick memorial to where the foolish rhino had once stood. 

“ What did you do?” Suddenly I'm jerked up, my feet dangling above the ground, as a large paw squeezes around my neck. 

“ Gak...” is all I can muster in reply. 

“ What. Did. You. DO?” With each word I'm shaken rather violently. My vision starts to tunnel as I claw at the paw crushing my neck.

“ Let him go.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also sorry (not really) about the cliffhanger.


	7. Chapter 6

#  Chapter 6

I whimper as I sprawl onto what is left of the concrete. My left wrist is throbbing in pain as my lungs try to decide which they want to do more: exhale or inhale precious oxygen.

“ Nice to see you too Donny,.” I croak out as I slowly stand up. I can see Fangmeyer in my peripheral vision, her pistol drawn and leveled against the white wolf in front of me. I can faintly hear paws as they slide on the concrete behind me and to my left.

“ Don’t give me that Wilde. I knew it was only a matter of time before you showed your true colors,” the wolf in front of me sneers. “One such as you doesn’t have the favor of Karma without having done something.” 

“ What are you talking about?” I raise an eyebrow as I look up at the wolf, my heart hammering in my chest. If it came down to it I’m not sure I could win a fight against him at the moment. I’m tired, worn out, hurt and I don't have my staff. But he on the other paw …

A sword almost magically appears in his paw as he levels the tip of it at my throat. 

“ DROP THE WEAPON!” Fangmeyer yells; I can see her finger tighten ever so slightly on the trigger of her pistol. 

“ You’re consorting with demons….” The wolf’s lips pull back in a snarl. “First outside of that hovel you call a home and the second here. Don't try to deny it, I've been watching you. So come quietly and face justice; maybe the Council will make it quick.”

“ Ahhh.” I smile smugly and stuff my paws into my pockets. “So the Council has violated their word?” 

My smug grin only grows at the increasing agitation on his face. “I…” 

The PFFFT of expelled CO2 along with the whistling thump as a red fletched tranq dart thumps into his neck cuts him off. It only takes a second before he waves slightly on his paws then collapses onto the concrete. His sword makes a ringing metallic clang as it strikes the ground.

“ Who’s that?” I look over at Judy as she walks up, holstering her weapon. She uses her foot and pushes the sword further away from the wolf; it clatters as it falls off of the concrete pad. 

“ Nice shot.” I look back to the wolf. “Donald Morgan , one of the Wardens of the White Council.” I spit on the concrete near the wolf. “They don't like me much.” 

“ I think that's an understatement,” Fangmeyer states as she paw cuffs and searches the Morgan. “So the question is why?”

I shrug. “They’ve had it out for me since I completed my apprenticeship.” I frown, not really wanting to say anything else. “Something about how I shouldn't exist; they’ve been dodgy on the subject.”

“ So how do you know Morgan?” 

I tilt my head and look down at Judy. “ He's been hounding my pawsteps for almost a decade now.” 

“ Well he won't be bothering you for a while. Threatening a mammal with a sword should get him locked away for a few years,” Fangmeyer says, seeming satisfied that Morgan doesn't have any other weapons on him. She looks over the small pile of his stuff that she’s removed from his pockets before she looking to Judy. “Do you have a phone or anything? We need to report to the Chief and my radio is fried.” 

I stare down at the wolf at my feet, not really having the heart to tell them that the council’s lawyers will probably have him out of jail and the city before the sun set.

“ Yeah. I’ll go make the call; my cell phone was off and should still work;” Judy replies as she heads toward the edge of the devastated area. We can hear the sounds of sirens in the distance.

“ Thank you.” 

I’m pulled out of my thoughts and look toward Fangmeyer.

“ You saved my life.” She looks toward what is left of Rhinowitz. “I’ll admit we didn’t take the Chief’s warning overly seriously.” She sighs. “I wonder how many others are left of my team.”

There isn’t anything I can say. I look around at the devastation. There really isn't anything left; anything that I could possibly have learned here went up in a raging inferno. My wrist throbs in time with my heartbeat as I try to remember everything that had once been here.

“ Could you have…”

The question hangs in the air almost like an accusation, but not quite. I shake my head. “The spell was epoxied into the concrete. If I had more time to study it maybe, but…”

“ He moved.”

I nod and walk over to where the rhino once stood. The grim memorial of his passing stands almost to my waist. I walk around it slowly, studying it, and pause for a moment, closing my eyes and then reopening them as I activate my wizard sight. I wish I hadn’t.

Rhinowitz’s soul howls in terror and pain, tied to what's left of his hoof and leg. He will desperately need to be laid to rest or I’ll be back here dealing with a poltergeist problem. I ignore him as best as I can; there’s little I can do for him at the moment. Time will tell if he moves on after he’s laid to rest or if I’ll need to intervene. I crouch down as my vision imposes the rune, or more importantly runes, that had been under the hoof.

I carefully move around the hoof as I study the runes, being careful not to touch them. My frown deepens as I look more toward the outer edges of where the circle had lain. The blast circle itself is much larger than the forty foot diameter that had been carved into the concrete, as it extends to just the outer walls of the warehouse itself. I study the runes of the outer diameter of the circle and get a sickening feeling in the pit of my stomach. All of the runes of the outer diameter are etched in fire, almost as if they had been burned into the fabric of reality itself. The only thing that really starts to become clear to me is that no living mammal made this.

I look around the rest of the devastation being careful not to look at Fangmeyer, Judy, or Morgan. I cock my head to one side as my eyes slide over the place where a fallen wall is folded over the nearest police cruiser.  _ Can’t be…. _

I close my eyes and reopen them, dispelling my wizard sight, and start moving toward the wall.  _ No one could have survived…. Could they?  _ I move faster toward the wall, my paws crunching on the rubble. 

“ I think some mammals are alive over here!” I shout as I start looking for a way under the fallen wall. 

“ Help!” The cry is faint and gruff sounding, followed by a wet sounding cough.

“ EMS is two minutes out, back up is five minutes out, and the Chief is on his way down here as well,” Judy reports as she jogs back up. “What’s going on?”

“ Someone is still alive in there!” I tell her.

“ On it!” I watch as she quickly looks around and runs over to where the door used to be. “I can fit under here!” My ears remain forward as I listen to her crawl under the fallen metal wall. 

“ Wolford are you ok?” Judy’s muffled voice can be heard through the metal and we can hear him cough. 

“ Been better…..” came the quieter reply. “Think I have broken ribs and I can’t move my right leg….”

“ He’s pinned; we’ll need Search and Rescue to cut him out,” Judy calls 

“ What about the suspect?” Fangmeyer asks.

We hear a click and a sudden intake of breath. “Sweet cheese and crackers…..” There’s a slight pause. “He….he didn’t make it…..”

“ I’m still here Fangmeyer,” we hear Wolford cough out. 

“ God dammit,” Fangmeyer huffs out; from the tone of her voice the scale of what’s happened has caught up to her. “The Chief is going to have my pelt for a new throw rug.” 

I back away and move to the five foot circle of concrete in the middle of the devastation and sit down. There is very little if nothing I can do to help the situation any, and I now have a freight train of trouble coming toward me. Namely Chief Buffalo Butt was ready to throw me in jail just this morning; wonder what he'll do to me now? I look over at Morgan; hopefully I won’t have that self righteous ass as cellmate. 

It's not too long before I hear an ambulance pull up and I look over just in time to catch Fangmeyer directing the EMT’s under the collapsed wall. I watch as a woodchuck scrambles under the wall through the same gap Judy had gone under, pulling a bag of medical supplies behind him. 

“ I know what you are…” My gaze turns and looks at Morgan. 

“ You know, I always wanted to know why the White Council doesn't like me.”

“ It’s because you're an abomination that shouldn’t exist,” he sneers at me. “You may have those simpletons fooled, but even that….” He trails off as I hear paws crunching on the gravel. 

“ That what?” But the only answer I get is a death glare as two officers, one hippo and one elephant, come over and lift him up.

“ Come on bud, time to get you into a cell,” says the hippo officer.

“ You’re brooding,” Judy says a few minutes later, pulling me out of my thoughts. 

I look up at her and shrug. “He going to be ok?” 

“ Yeah, the EMT said that Wolford got lucky; the piece of metal that went through his leg missed the artery,” she says as she sits down beside me. “They are waiting for Fire and Rescue to come cut him out so they can take him to the hospital to remove it.”

“ Good.” 

“ Nick….” I look over at her. “Thank you.”

“ Think nothing of it Fluff,” I say a little more light heartedly than I felt. “I would hate to have to break in another partner when you’ve just learned how I like my coffee.”

She huffs at me and lightly punches me in the arm. “Stupid fox.” 

I start to open my mouth in retort when movement out of the corner of my eye draws my attention. “Great, here comes Chief Buffalo Butt; now I'm really going to get it.”

We watch as Bogo stands at the edge of the devastation, his eyes scanning the area. They land on us briefly as they move over the scene. They stop and linger for some time on the charred remains of Rhinowitz’s hoof. I watch as first disbelief then resignation cross the proud mammal’s face and his features soften somewhat. 

“ Fangmeyer, what the hell happened here?” I hear an uncharacteristically sympathetic tone to his gruff voice. My eyes track his progress from the edge to where she stood. 

“ Four officers KIA along with our three suspects.” She motions him over to Judy and I. We stand as they approach. “The initial raid went without a hitch. Rhinowitz breached the outside door and we moved in. A male goat, approximately 34 years old, was in the first room and he promptly fainted. Howlerton cuffed him as Rhinowitz smashed in a wooden door leading deeper into the warehouse. We encountered two other mammals; one of them was the sheep that was given to us as a suspect, Jessie Woolter. We pawcuffed them without incident and were getting ready to transport them outside when I heard Rhinowitz ask ‘What the hell is this?’ or something close to that. Rhinowitz had stepped on something Officer Hopps, Mr. Wilde, and myself went to investigate. It glowed sir.”

“ What did he step on that could cause this?” 

“ A trigger that was likely also a lure for the first mammal that entered here that didn’t belong,” I answer. “He said he heard something, but didn’t have time to elaborate.” 

“ I thought I briefed not to touch anything.” 

“ You did, and I reminded my team after our specialists joined us three blocks away.”

Bogo snorts and looks down at me. “Was there anything you could have done?”

I shake my head. “The…. trap for a lack of a better word was carved an eighth of an inch into the concrete slab and then some sort of hard resin was put over it. In the time that I had to look at it and before it went off there was no time to attempt to stop it.” 

Bogo nods and takes another look at the destruction, his eyes once again landing on the remains of Rhinowitz. His head turned, tracking the devastation all the way back past where we stood. “How did you three survive?”

“ Mr. Wilde saved us somehow; I didn't even feel the heat, but Chief…” Fangmeyer looks him in the eye. “It was like being inside a raging inferno.” 

“ I cast a shield spell.”

“ Three,” Judy adds with a frown. “I could hear the pops. It hurt you… Nick your wrist!” I feel her grabbing my left paw as she studies the burns and blackened bracelet. 

“ Hopps get your partner some medical attention…” Bogo starts.

“ No hospitals,” I interrupt.

He snorts at that. “At least have the paramedics look it over. Then you two get out of here. I expect your reports by noon tomorrow.” He turned his head to look at Fangmeyer. “What happened here isn’t your fault. I’m putting you on administrative leave for a week; we will talk more when you get back.”

“ But sir…” she starts.

“ Fangmeyer, take the week; you did the best you could here today.” He looks down at Judy and I. “All of you did.”

“ Come on Slick,” Judy says as she pulls my paw. “Let’s get you looked at and then get Cotton early.”

I let Judy all but drag me toward one of the waiting ambulances. My thoughts are dark; did I do my best? Could I have saved more of the officers? Could I have stopped that spell? Well, the answer to the last question is no, or at least not with what I had on paw. The rest I don't know; hind sight in these matters is always 20/20. 

“ He has a burn around his left wrist,” Judy starts to tell a paramedic, pulling me from my thoughts.

I look up as a badger EMT looks at the burn. “Mmmm, looks like a second degree burn; we’ll need to cut the bracelet off.” He frowns as he gives me a side eyed look. “This is a rather specific area burn considering what’s been rumored to have happened here; how did you get it?

I shrug unsure of what to tell him.

“ Ummm, electrical arc when the wall collapsed,” Judy answers.

“ Right…” the badger says dismissively as he climbs into the back of the ambulance. “Damn lucky fox.”

Sometime later, after a thorough explanation of how to treat the burn that I'm sure Judy paid more attention to than I did, we head home. We end up taking a cab since our cruiser is buried under rubble, a fact that I'm sure will cause Chief Buffalo Butt a minor headache in finding a suitable replacement for. Not that I take any sort of pride in causing Bogo a headache. Well at least not in this instance, but if circumstances were different? Perhaps.

Judy walks close to me as we make our way from the apartment toward HEC. She changed out of her form fitting uniform into what has to be much more comfortable country bunkin wear. I on the other paw thankfully ditched the bullet proof vest. 

The sun is shining brightly overhead and, if I'm being honest, maybe a bit too brightly. The sky is a clear deep blue and the air thankfully doesn't reek of hellfire and brimstone. It’s a beautiful day, perhaps made even more beautiful by a not so minor brush with death.

“ So what’s the White Council?” The sudden question breaks the semi comfortable silence. I had even briefly forgotten the awkwardness that our day had started with.

“ The White Council of Mages; well, they’d like to think they’re the governing body of magic users the world over,” I answer.

“ Like to think?” 

I shrug and look down at her. “Think of the Council kinda like the UN. They can only really impose their will on those weaker than themselves.” I pause for a moment and look down at her. “I mean really, who would want to try to impose their will on, say, a dragon? But sometimes they do good things; it's why you don't see warlocks running around with armies of demon spawn trying to take over the world.” 

“ That would also imply that sometimes they don't.”

I nod. “They typically take a more lethal form of punishment over rehabilitation style of policing magic users. In some cases I can almost understand it; once a mammal starts consorting with hellspawn it's rather hard if impossible to get them to stop, and with the corrupting nature of hellspawn it's really only a matter of time before they go off the deep end.” 

“ But?” 

“ But sometimes there are accidents; kits don't know any better or things get way out of paw due to an emotional response. Some Wardens understand there are mitigating circumstances and try to help those kits. Others though, like Morgan?” I shake my head. “Not so much.”

“ Oh.” I can hear the sadness in her voice. “So what happened that made him target you?”

I shrug. “I honestly don't know; many members of the council don't like me. I did my apprenticeship and took my trials; technically I'm a member of the White Council myself. The best I can gather is that my mother did something, but even my grandfather won't really tell me what and as near as I know she’s dead. Morgan and I aren’t supposed to be within a few hundred miles of each other, so for him to come here is troubling.”

“ Well he won't bother for a while.”

I snort. “Maybe.” 

“ And if he does I’ll just tranq him again.” There’s a protective tone in her voice that causes me to smile just a bit. “I mean it Nick. I have your back.” 

I look down at her, smiling warmly. “I know you do Fluff, and I have yours.”

The rest of the walk passes quietly, and unlike this morning without the air of discomfort between us. Honestly I cannot explain how much knowing a mammal has my back means to me. That is something I have not had in a long time if ever. My grandfather was a harsh teacher but he taught me well, but wizards hoard secrets like a dragon hoards gold. I shouldn’t have really been that surprised that he would keep something about my mother from me. But he has and that has driven a large wedge between us. 

I look down at Judy. There is a lesson there, and maybe that's why I've been so free with my secrets with her. 

It’s not long before I'm leaning against the stone wall of HEC. My arms crossed over my chest. My wrist still throbs, but the pain isn't as bad as it was this morning. 

I uncross my arms as I hear the pattering of paws behind me and turn just in time to catch an arm load of squealing bunny kit. 

“ Mr. Nick! Mama said we have the rest of the day off!” Cotton exclaims.

“ That we do Cottonball; what would ya like to do?”

“ We could play games, or go to the park, or read, or or or … ” I can’t help but grin at the over eager little rabbit. 

“ How about….” I think for a moment. “Ice cream?” 

“ ICE CREAM! Mama can we pwease?” Cotton squirms around and looks to Judy. “Pwease….” she asks again. I can almost feel the weaponized cuteness radiating out of her.

“ How about it Fluff?” I grin at Judy. “You, me, and Cottonball go get sundaes or something?” 

I watch, my grin only getting bigger as she huffs but smiles. “Ok, but after we’re going to go to the park.”

I grin as I put Cotton down. “Good idea, let her run off some of the sugar.”

“ YAY!” Cotton yells as she dances excitedly. “Ice cream and the park!” 

“ So Mr. Nick, where is the nearest ice cream shop?” I look down to see Judy’s questioning look and grin.

“This way,” I say, playfully pointing in one direction just to spin around and go in the opposite, much to Cotton’s delight as she giggles. What can I say, the little rabbit brings out the playful side of me. 

“ Silly Mr. Nick!” Cotton giggles at me. 

I grin down at Judy, who despite herself has a mildly amused smirk on her face as she falls in step beside me. 

“ So what kind of ice cream do you want Cottonball?” 

“ I want a scoop of carrot ice cream and blueberry and sprinkles!” 

I take on a false posh British tone. “Would you like that on a cone or in a cup, m’lady?” 

Cotton giggles at me. “Cone!” 

“ And what about you Carrots?” 

“ I think I will decide when we get there.”

“ Ohhh spur of the moment bunny, I like it.” 

Judy shakes her head at me as I shoot her a wink. The rest of the walk passes pretty quietly and I try not to notice how close Judy is . Cotton on the other paw has the little finger of my right paw in a near death grip as she skips along happily beside me with her little pink backpack on. 

I pull open the door for La Daux Ice Cream and treats and hold it open for the pair of rabbits, following them inside as they step through the door. The cafe’s interior is done is soothing tones of light grey and deep blue with a black and white checkered tile floor. Behind the counter stands a white wolf in a short sleeved shirt, stark white apron, and a chef’s hat cocked to one side covering an ear. 

“ Nick,” the wolf starts. “It’s great to see you again it's been a while; looks like you brought some company.” 

“ Freddy,” I greet the wolf, “I would like you to meet Officer Judy Hopps and her daughter Cotton.

He leans his elbows on the counter and looks over at Cotton. “I bet you would like a great big scoop of ice cream.”

“ Two!” Cotton exclaims.

“ Wow, two! And just what two scoops would you like?” Freddy asks.

“ Carrot and Blueberry please!” 

“ On a cone or in a cup?” 

“ Cone and sprinkles!” 

“ Ahh, a rabbit after my own heart.” Freddy gives a big grin as he starts making Cotton’s ice cream.

“ How's the pack doing?”

“ Well, we have the new lodge set up and the trees seem content,” Freddy answers as he finishes Cotton’s ice cream cone. He leans over and hands it to her. 

“ Whoa….” Cotton says almost reverently, as the cone and two scoops of ice cream stand almost as tall as one of her ears. “Thank you!”

I grin down at Cotton. “That's good to hear. I hope it stays that way.”

“ And you miss?” Freddy asks, turning his attention to Judy.

“ A scoop of chocolate banana swirl in a cup please?” 

“ Good choice ma’am.” Freddy looks at me with a raised eyebrow. “Soul food?” 

“ Soul food,” I confirm. 

“ Sarah! Warm up a slice of blueberry pie,” he calls into the back of the kitchen. “If you guys want to find a seat I’ll bring out your orders in just a moment.” 

“ Sure,” Judy says as we turn to walk over to a booth.

“ This is sooo good.” Cotton said as she licks and nibbles on the cone. 

“ So how did you find this place Slick?”

“ I didn’t; it found me.” I grinned at her. “Freddy’s pack purchased some land outside of the city. Beautiful place really; deep valley with a stream running through it, lots of pine trees as well as some old growth oak trees. A waterfall feeds the stream, and I think what most appealed to the pack is that it’s outside of the influence of the weather walls so it gets all four seasons even if the winter out there is a little harsh.” 

“ What did they want the land for?”

I shrug. “They wanted a place where they could run free, howl at the moon, and not be yelled at to shut up and live their lives.”

“ So how does that connect to this cafe?” Judy asks.

“ We had a minor problem with the trees,” Freddy explains as he sits a bowl of Ice cream in front of Judy and hands me my blueberry pie with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top.

I take a bite of my pie and ice cream and close my eyes. The rich flavors wash over my tongue. There’s a reason I call this soul food; Freddy’s wife Sarah makes some of the best pies in the city. 

“ A problem how?” Judy asks after a bite of her ice cream.

“ A dryad who lives in the oak grove didn’t take too kindly to my pack moving into the valley.”

“ A dryad?” I smile at the look on her face. It's not disbelief but something else, not sure what. 

I nod. “A sort of spirit that lives in trees, mostly old growth oak. They’re friendly for the most part….” 

“ Unless you happen to be holding a chainsaw,” Freddy cuts in. “She did a number on several of our pack mates. Didn’t kill anyone, but she did tear up some equipment and scare the….” he glances at Cotton, “us pretty badly.” 

“ Unless that,” I agree, and smile across the table as I take another bite of my pie and ice cream.

“ Can I meet one?” Cotton asks. 

“ Maybe; again, they’re pretty friendly but shy.” I shrug and glance at Freddy. “Typically that is.”

“ So what happened?” Judy looks between Freddy and I. “Since you said lives I take it the dryad is still there?”

I nod. “I was able to get the Pack Alpha and the dryad to talk and they worked out something that is mutually beneficial.”

“ How so?” Judy asks

“ Well we protect the dryad’s grove and have expanded it to encompass the entirety of our retreat, and in return she discourages unwanted visitors,” Freddy explains. “She’s taken the name Minerva and occasionally runs with us.” 

“ Really?” I ask.

“ Yeah. Well, I’ll let you enjoy your treats.” He looks down at me. “Remember Nick, your money isn’t any good here.”

I can see the questioning look in Judy’s eyes and smile at her. “Relax Carrots. I was contacted to, ummm, remove the dryad from the SIlverpaw Valley. Since I didn’t do that I only asked for gas money instead of my normal rate. Freddy here offered me free food and I only come here on the rare occasion that I feel like I need to drown my sorrows in pie.” 

Judy nods and looks down at her ice cream. “It’s good ice cream.”

I nod and grin at her. “They make it themselves here.”

“ Really?”

“ Yeah, along with the pies; Sarah makes some of the best pies.”

“ So,” she grins across the table at me, “come here often then?”

“ Why Officer Hopps, that has to be the most overused pick up line in history.” I can’t help but grin as she looks away mildly embarrassed “But to answer your question no, no I do not.”

“ Good,” The grin returns to her face along with half lidded eyes. “I would hate to have to work you twice as hard at the gym to get you into shape.”

The rest of the day passes relatively quietly and quickly. Playing with Cotton in the park is like a balm to our wounded souls. It truly does help put things into perspective. The media frenzy over the warehouse explosion started after Judy and I had already left, and since we haven’t been hounded I'm pretty sure that Chief Bogo is keeping a lid on which officers were involved. 

Later that evening I stretch out on the couch. I'm tired and sore. I want nothing more than to curl up here and go to sleep. My ears perk up as I hear the sound of paws quietly landing on the floor, and after a moment I hear soft paw steps toward me. 

“ Nick?” Judy asks quietly. “Are you asleep?” There’s a quality to her voice that I’ve never from her heard before. She sounds almost vulnerable. 

“ Not yet Fluff.” 

“ Can we talk?” 

With those three little words I felt the awkwardness from this morning come rushing back. “Ummm, sure…” I say as I sit up.

She sits down on the couch beside me and curls her feel up under her. She sighs as she looks from me to the fire. Seconds tick past as the fire pops and snaps in the fireplace. I glance at her, her features are softened even more by the fire light, and I can't help the slight smile that crosses my muzzle. 

“ I’m sorry….” she starts softly, “about this morning. I didn’t mean to make you feel uncomfortable.”

“ Uncomfortable?” I frown. “Is this about this morning?

She nods.

“ But you said it was no big deal.”

“ I… didn’t want us to have an awkward conversation before work.” She glances at me then back to the fire. “I thought maybe if I ignored it we would be just like we’ve been for the last few weeks and everything would be ok.”

I nod and smile at her. “I was going to apologize to you. I was afraid that I might have gotten a little bit pawsy last night.” 

She shakes her head no and sighs before looking up at me. “We feel safe with you.” I blink in surprise at the admission. “It’s no small thing for us Nick…. Ugggh, why does this have to be so hard?” She takes a deep breath. “I’m sorry Nick if we overstepped some boundary and made you feel uncomfortable….” She starts wringing her paws in front of her slightly before she looks away.

“ Fluff?”

“ Rabbits like to be warm and close to those we…..trust, and you were the warmest thing in the bed and we trust you.” She glances up at me before looking back toward the fire. “Cotton loves you and I… like you too…. and Cotton hasn’t liked any of the bucks I’ve dated...”

“ Well I am awesome, so clearly your daughter has good taste.” I grin at her attempting to lighten the mood a little bit.

“ That's… debatable.” The smirk on her face lets me know I have somewhat succeeded.

“ But if it means anything, she means a lot to me as well and I like being around you.” I take a deep breath as I look toward the fire. “Honestly though? Even with the nightmare it was probably one of the best night’s sleep I've had in a long time, as I felt ...”

“ Not so alone?” she finishes for me, and I nod. “I felt the same way; it's why I pulled your paw back down this morning.” 

I smile, unsure what to say to that.

“ We’ve had two...dates, both with Cotton.”

I smile. “Both were pretty fun for me.”

She returns my smile. “I enjoyed them too but...I think I’d like to try one without her, just the two of us.” 

“ I’d like that.”

“ Good.” She stands up. “How about this weekend? I’ll see if Olivia can watch Cotton for a few hours.”

“ Sure,” I wink at her. “I think I'm free.”

She huffs and looks at the bed, then toward me. “It was a rough day.”

“ Yeah….”

She holds out her paw to me. “A little hard to have nightmares when you’re surrounded by mammals you trust.”

I look at her paw and stand, taking it, letting her pull me toward the bed. “If you’re sure….”

“ Just get in bed you dumb fox.”

I grin as I carefully go over the side of the dresser and lay down on my side. “Sly bunny.” 

She doesn't even bother with preamble as she curls up, her back against my chest, and pulls my right arm over her. “Good night Nick.”

“ Good night Carrots.”


	8. Chapter 7

#  Chapter 7

Leaning against the wall outside of HEC as I wait on Fluff to drop Cotton off gives me some time to reflect. Waking up this morning had been far less awkward than the previous morning. On top of that, for once in my life I actually feel…..refreshed and ready to take on a new day. I didn’t dream; or at least if I did they were happier dreams that didn’t disturb my slumber. 

I take a sip of my coffee, once again made just the way I like it. It might even taste better than the way I do it. Though that could very well just be my imagination. 

“ Ok Slick, ready to make the world a better place?” I almost can’t help the grin that spreads across my face.

“ I am,” I answer her. The walk to the precinct building felt lighter than it should have. I mean four officers lost their lives yesterday, yet I'm at ease. I’m confident that I did the best I could; after all, I’m not a god. I’m not even sure if Karma could’ve gotten everyone out of that alive. Well, maybe she could have or maybe she wouldn’t have. Karma has her own agenda after all, and she's always kept it to herself. 

The atrium of the Precinct this morning is somber to say the least. I don’t even get the snide remarks or the harsh glares this morning. You can hear the standard typing and the odd ringing of a phone, but the place has all the character of a funeral home. 

Even Clawhauser isn’t as jovial this morning, and I’d begun to think nothing could ever bring that chubby cheetah down. “Morning guys…” Ben greets us as he picks up a black band from a box on his desk and paws it over to Judy. 

Judy fixes it across her badge on her chest protector. “Thanks Clawhauser.”

Clawhauser looks over the top of his desk at us. “The Chief wants you two to review the…” he makes a grimacing face, “ … evidence from the back of Fangmeyer's cruiser this morning. CSI believes that there’s some strange tattooing involved and have recreated it as best as they can from the remains.” 

“ Any word on if they got search teams up on the weather walls yet?” Carrots asks.

“ Yeah the City Council ok'd it after….. the event yesterday, but there are miles of those walls; we don't expect anything back soon.”

Judy nods. “I’ll make printouts forNick when we get downstairs to our office.”

Clawhauser grimaces. “I hope you two had a light breakfast.”

“ Come on Slick, let's go see what the lab has for us.” I can tell her enthusiasm is drastically diminished from what it had been outside of HEC this morning.

Moments later I pull the folded sheet of paper from my lab out of my pocket as I sit down at my desk. I flip open the notebook on my desk and flip past my notes on the summoning circle and start transcribing the runes and the explanations of them into it. All of my notes are of course written in Latin, since there’s only one mammal in this building I trust. At this point it would be foolish of me to think that the ZPD hasn’t been infiltrated.

I take a sip of my coffee as Judy walks into our office. I’d been so engrossed in my notes that I barely noticed that she’d left in the first place. She honestly looks a little green as she drops a stack of printouts onto my desk. 

I quickly understand why as I spread the printouts on my desk. There, spread out on my desk in grainy color photos, are all that remains of the goat. Pictures thankfully just don't bother me nearly as much as seeing it in person would have. 

I start to study the photos; it takes me a few minutes to realize I’m looking at bits and pieces of the goat’s hide with the fur scorched away. There in what I am assuming is ink are dark blue lines that start to make some familiar patterns. Five of the six print outs on my desk are of the pieces of hide; the last one shows the approximate areas of the body that they believe that the pieces came from

Each of the five pieces are believed to have come from the limbs and head. I look at the most complete piece and grimace; it’s an almost exact match for one of the capacitor runes that Skull Ben showed us the day before yesterday. “What a way to go I mutter.”

“ You recognize them?” Judy asks, and I nod, flipping around the page from my lab and the one mostly complete rune from the goat and point to the capacitor rune and the one on from the goat.

“ They almost match. See this one,” I point to the picture of the goat,m “is just missing the bit at the bottom.”

“ Ok, so this one stores energy, right?”

“ That right it does,” I confirm. “My guess is they stored energy from the explosion until they couldn't store it any more.”

Judy frowns…”Why?” 

“ What better way to keep your underlings from snitching on your plans?”

“ That means….”

“ That these guys probably knew they were dead as soon as the door smashed open.” I pause as I think about it. “We should check with the other precincts to see if any other strange deaths happened yesterday.”

Judy turns just a little more green. “There was a lot of equipment in there.” 

“ Yeah.”

“ I’ll do a records search and see if I can find anything about exploding mammals yesterday.” 

I nod and look back down at my work, frowning. The transfer of these runes onto the goats hide had to have been painful and not something entered into lightly as moving even a little bit would have thrown off the transfer of magic enough to keep them from working. The margin of error with magic is zero; it either works or it doesn't and, sometimes when it only partly works, the results are fatal. 

I rub my temples as a new question comes to mind. Are we dealing with a small group of mammals that somehow summoned a greater demon here, or are we dealing with a full fledged cult?

The more I think about it, a cult makes more and more sense. How else would anyone get 92 mammals to stand still to summon a greater demon? But what could they possibly hope to gain from bringing said greater demon onto this plane? I mean, the rest would bolt after the first mammal was slain, right?

My right ear flicks in irritation as I picture my staff leaning against the wall by the door at home. 

Judy sighs in exasperation and looks over at me. “What's on your mind Slick?” 

“ Just thinking…”

“ About what?” Her eyes harden just a tad as she adds. “And don’t even try to tell me it’s nothing; my computer has locked up twice in ten minutes!”

I sigh as I look across the office space at her. “I don’t think this is being done by just a small pawful of mammals Fluff.” 

Judy frowns as she looks across at me. “Meaning what? That this is connected to Craig?” 

“ Possibly. Look, I think Memnoth wasn’t the only demon that came through. There was just too much power thrown around for something as…..” I didn’t want to call Memnoth minor, as my right side still smarts a bit when I run. But if the shoe fits. “ … minor as Memnoth.”

“ Nick! You blacked out fighting that thing,” she holds up two fingers, “twice! I don't think it was a minor anything!”

“ That's what I’m saying, Fluff.  _ I  _ was able to take down Memnoth.” What I don’t say is I had a small bit of motivation in doing that. “I think it’s time I start bringing my staff with me to work.”

“ If that’s what you’re worried about then we can get it at lunch or before we have to go anywhere.” She smiles at me. “Now please relax so I can do this search; this will be the third time I've started it.”

I nod and pick up the printouts on my desk, setting them aside in a stack before turning my attention back to my notes. A sudden realization strikes me as I look down at my notebook.  _ What if the 92 mammals sacrificed where cultists?  _ I swallow nervously. It's a thought that I keep to myself for the moment.

The rest of the morning passes relatively quietly, Judy doing database searches and I with my notebook book in front of me. The new runes have given me ideas for some new equipment but I have yet to figure out what to put them on. If it works, and it should, it would technically make something bulletproof by using the kinetic force to redirect the energy back to the projectile. Would still hurt like hell, but it would definitely keep me from being turned into fox Swiss cheese and wouldn't be nearly as heavy as the vest I’d worn yesterday.

“ No,” Judy said, breaking the comfortable silence that had settled over the office. “No mammals have spontaneously combusted, exploded, or been reported as mysteriously disappearing in the last twenty-four hours.”

I look up at her.

“ The only trace we have is of the goat from the back of Fangmeyer’s cruiser.” Judy said as she looks at her computer screen. “One Rodger Cliffgrazer, age 27; I’ve already sent his address to the Chief requesting a search warrant.” 

“ So more hurry up and wait?” My stomach chooses that moment to growl loudly. Judy looks over at me wide eyed, her nose twitching rapidly just before her stomach growls in response. 

Judy pulls her ID from the card reader and smiles at me. “Come on Slick, let’s go get some lunch.”

I pop my back as I stand up and follow her out the door. The walk through the building is quiet even when we reach the ground floor. Most of the mammals have either left for lunch or went out on their assigned patrols.

“ We’re heading to lunch Clawhauser!” Judy calls as we walk out. 

“ Ok you two, don't do anything I wouldn’t do!” I grin at the playful tone of his voice. Glancing down at Judy I can see a slight smile on her face as I hold the door open for her.

“ So Slick, where would you like to go for lunch?” I squint slightly as my eyes adjust to the harshness of the sun. 

“ Mmmmm, how about Thai?” I ask as we walk down the steps. “There’s this nice little place a block or so from the apartment.” 

“ As long as it’s not some thinly veiled attempt at getting a bunny to eat bug meat or anything.”

“ You wound me Carrots,” I hold a paw up to my chest dramatically. “You think that I would stoop so low?”

She snorts and punches me lightly in the arm. “Yes, yes you would.”

“ Ok Fluff you got me, but no tricks this time; they actually have a fairly good vegetable curry.” 

“ Really?”

“ Yeah, probably the best in the city.” 

Foot traffic is relatively light. I mean, there are mammals of all shapes and sizes but we don't have to dodge every third step to avoid being crushed under some mega fauna's hoof nor are we all shoulder to shoulder with other mammals. It’s comfortable, but that might have more to do with the aura I give off; mammals tend to give me space, and it’s probably a good thing for their personal electronic devices.

“ So where are you taking me out to this weekend Fluff?” There is a playfulness in my tone that surprises even me. 

“ Me?” she asks, looking up at me in surprise.

“ Mmmmhmmm you asked me out, so don't you have to plan it?”

“ I dunno….”

“ Well I think that’s the way this works.” I grin and shoot her a wink.

There is a playful gleam in her eyes as she starts to retort, but it’s cut off suddenly by the vibrating of both of our pagers. She grabs hers off of her belt and looks at the small screen and sighs. “I need to call Clawhauser; looks like lunch might be postponed.”

I nod as I watch her speed up and move farther ahead of me. I frown as I’d kind of started looking forward to curry. The call doesn't last long before she turns around and heads back toward me. I can tell I'm not going to like what she has to say, as her ears are flat against her back. 

“ They found something and we need to go check it out,” she says, falling back in step with me.

“ So how are we supposed to get there?” I ask. “Wasn’t our car totaled yesterday?”

She nods. “With the number of officers that we’re….” She looks down. “Bogo has cleared us to take one of the other cruisers.”

I raise an eyebrow at that. “Really?”

“ Yeah, I’ll go get our car and meet you near the apartment.”

“ Ok Fluff.” 

“ We’ll pick up something on the way, since we’ll be heading to the north side of Sahara Square,” she calls back to me before turning around and heading back toward the Precinct.

Twenty minutes later I'm leaning against the building with my staff in paw as I wait. I get a few odd looks from some of the foot traffic but it’s really not that surprising. The cruiser that pulls up to the curb in front of me looks new and clean. The black and white paint job gleams in the sun while the dark tinted windows somewhat hides the driver from outside view. 

The passenger side window rolls down and see Judy beaming brightly at me. “Hey there Slick, need a lift?” 

“ That depends Officer; am I riding in the front seat or back seat?” 

“ Just get in the car.” 

“ Yes ma’am.” I give her a lazy salute with my right paw as I walk over to the cruiser, my staff in my left paw. She rolls up the window just moments before I get to the door and I climb inside. The vehicle was obviously meant for far larger mammals; the seats had been switched out for the pair of us, along with a whole new control system with video feeds from around the cruiser. It almost seems like she’s piloting a rocket ship instead of driving a car.

Settling in for a long drive across the city, I rest my chin on my paw and prepare to watch the cityscape pass by. 

“ Officers from Precinct 3 found something on the weather wall between Sahara Square and Tundra Town,” she starts, pulling me from my thoughts. “They report that it’s being struck by lighting every five minutes and it glows.”

“ Did they mention what color it glows?” 

“ Blue, but does it really matter?”

I shrug. “Color can give an indication of what sort of magic is at play. Blue could be creation magic.”

“ That doesn't sound so bad.” 

I look over at her. “It could also be an ice bomb.”

She looks over at me briefly. “Sweet cheese and crackers….”

“ The likelihood of that is rather small, considering that it’s being actively struck by lightning.” Judging by the twitching of her nose it's probably not a good idea to tell her that it could also be charging. But again the likelihood really is rather small We stop quickly at some fast food joint. The food is so unremarkable and bland I would’ve rather had a can of Chef Howlardee. I make a mental note to never eat at this Bug-a-Burger place again.

We cross through the desert themed Sahara Square pretty easily and make our way up a sandy maintenance road toward the towering structure of the weather wall. The wall itself is huge and only looms higher over us the closer we get to it. It must have been what George R.R. Martin used as a basis for the Wall of the North. 

I swallow nervously as I glance at the dash clock to see an outside temperature reading of 120F. The temperature slowly climbs the closer we get. We are eventually waved through a gate at the base of the wall and pull beside another police SUV.

Judy looks over at me and nods before opening her door. Stepping outside of the cruiser is a lot like what I imagine stepping into Hell would be like. The air is so hot it’s damn near suffocating. The sand near scalds the paw pads of my feet. AAnd then there’s the noise. Oh god, the noise is nearly deafening with a constant mechanical drone. It’s like standing beside a thousands jet engines with afterburners lit, just constant heat and noise. 

I meet Judy at the front of our cruiser as we’re approached by three overly woolly sheep officers. They appear comical in their uniforms, with their shirts tight and various tufts of wool sticking out here and there. I almost break down laughing at them with their small arms sticking out of their shirts with short sleeves stretched taut by the wool. It's like a kit decided that they needed big muscles because they’re police officer but then remembered that they’re sheep. 

Maybe it’s the or noise maybe it's something else. But alarm bells start going off in my head as my left paw tightens around the highly polished wood grain of my staff. I eye the sheep officers, looking for anything that might explain why I’m feeling the way I do. I don't have a lot of experience with sheep ; honestly, with some of them having square pupils for eyes and some round they kind of give me the creeps. 

“ Come on Nick.” Judy’s voice pulls me from my thoughts and I fall into step with her. We are led into the wall itself and if I thought the noise on the outside was bad, inside was at least ten times worse. The feeling of wrong doesn't leave me; if anything it gets worse as we are led over to what I can only describe as a freight elevator. 

We step into the spacious elevator car. One of the sheep officers is behind me and to my right. I can see him in my peripheral vision if I just turn my head slightly in their direction. The other two are ahead of us, almost as if they’re herding Judy and I to the center of the car.

The ascent of the elevator is terrifying. It shakes and jolts and groans its way up the shaft. A few times the lights even flicker; if it’s close to whatever construct they have making the drug then I’m surprised it's working at all. When the car finally grinds to a halt the doors have to be forced open by the sheep officers so we can slip out. 

The top of the weather wall is unlike anything I have ever experienced before. It has to be over 100 feet wide. Fans, duct-works, and various other bits and pieces of equipment dot the expanse. Looking to the north there is a breathtaking view of Tundra Town with clouds slowly starting to form. To the south is the desert expanse of Sahara Square and beyond that the great Mammalian Bay with its deep blue water shining brightly in the mid afternoon sun. The air up here wasn't nearly as stifling, almost as if the cold from Tundra Town counteracted the heat. 

“ It's this way,” one of the sheep says as he starts to walk off. I look down to Judy, who nods in response, and we start to follow him. From the set of her shoulders and ears I can tell that she’s feeling the same sense wrongness as I. 

KARKTHOOM! came the sudden burst of lightning, causing me to jump slightly. My tail puffs out a bit with the excess static electricity in the air. I glance down at Judy, who looks up at me.

“ Ya get used to it,” the sheep in the lead says. “Come on, some of us have wives and lambs we’d like to get home to.” We continue at a reasonable pace to the west, the elevator getting farther and farther behind us. 

I feel the construct before I see it. It throbs and pulsates, seemingly like a heartbeat. There is enough magic in the air that it almost tints the air blue; I can feel it singing in my veins. 

We come around a large vent duct and there it sits. A large out circle surrounded by runes running along its outside circumference, with four smaller rings inside of it connected by complex lines. In two of the circles sat jars made from a silver tinted glass. In one sat a powdery bright blue substance; in the other sat a deep purple liquid. 

KARKTHOOM! The lightning bolt struck dead center of one of the empty circles; the runes around both circles flare bright blue clockwise then counterclockwise before running around the two jars. A small tinkling of bright blue powder falls into its jar, adding to what's already there. 

I kneel down to study the circles for a few moments. It’s fascinating in the complexity of its construction; the interwoven layers convert the energy from the lightning strike, along with whatever the deep purple substance is, to make the blue powder. “You can relax Fluff; it’s not going to explode.” 

“ Well that's good.” I still hear some nervousness in her voice. 

“ Welcome to my parlor said the spider to the fly,” a voice said that sounds a lot like Morgan’s but off, more strained than his usual tone. I look up to see him step out from behind a large piece of equipment, his sword already drawn and held at his side. His eyes are completely black and soulless. 

“ Uhhh, Nick?” Judy says behind me. I glance behind me to see that the eyes of the sheep officers are also completely black.

“ Donny, what a surprise.” I stand and thump the end of my staff against the top of the wall. I can hear something deep inside of it starting to spin up higher. “Though I have to say the demon eye thing isn’t a good look on you.”

The cackle that escapes Morgans throat is a little unnerving. “This one didn’t come easily wizard, but I can be very persuasive.” 

“ Ahh, so he's still in there?” 

“ Hahahahaha….” Morgan cuts off the laugh abruptly. “No.”

I frown at that, as demons have are consummate liars. I close my eyes and reopen them, activating my wizard sight. I see a swirling black pit of despair and hate in front of me where Morgans body stood. There are swirling tendrils leading from him to what I assume is each of the three sheep behind me

I sigh as I close my eyes. 

“ Maybe you are not such a fool after all wizard.” I open my eyes and stare at the thing wearing Morgan’s body. “I shall make you an offer.”

“ Let me guess, one I cannot refuse?”

“ Oh you can refuse it; it just wouldn't be wise.” 

I eye the thing and feel a subtle shift behind me as Judy turns to face the sheep at my back. The tip of my tail flicks in agitation. “Ok let's hear it.”

“ You’re strong wizard. But you could be oh so much stronger; join us and I’ll give you everything you ever wanted,” the thing wearing Morgan's body sneers. “As a bonus I will even let you keep the rabbit and her spawn.”

I mull it over for onlya moment. It’s not really that tempting to be honest; deals with Hell Spawn always come with a price. “And just what do I have to do?” I pause as I feel Judy tense behind me. “Let one of your little friends ride around in my head? Giving up my free will really would defeat the purpose of giving me the rabbit; or maybe you want me to torture said rabbit? Or maybe murder a loved one?” 

“ It’s a small thing really…” The demon smiles at me. 

“ Well I have a counter offer,” I start as I flex my right paw. “Take your offer and suck on a great big ball of FUEGO!” With the word fuego I thrust my right paw forward, flinging a ball of fire at the demon's face. 

My eyes widen as the demon bats the fire ball away with the sword contemptuously. It starts to close the distance between us and raise its own paw. I barely sidestep the wave of force and raise my staff to block the sword swing being leveled right at my neck. I bring the end of my staff around and swing it straight into the wolf’s groin; while it may have been a cheap shot my grandfather always said that there are no rules in a life or death fight, only losers and survivors

The demon grunts with the blow but doesn't bend over as I’d expected; instead it back paws me across the face, hard. The blow rattles my teeth inside of my skull and sends me rolling away. I continue the roll twice before coming up into a kneeling position just in time to catch a downward swing of the sword on my staff. 

I hear a rapid PFFT, PFFT, PFFT and see two red fletched darts thump into Morgans neck and shoulder. The demon leans down, pushing against my staff as it peels Morgans lips back in a nasty snarl. “You should have taken my offer wizard,” it sneers at me. 

I drop my left paw from my staff, letting the butt of it smack against the hard concrete of weather wall. The demon in wolf's clothing doesn’t expect it and starts to topple in that direction when I slam my open left paw into it stomach and shout, “FORZARE!” sending a blast of concentrated force into its stomach and launching it into the air. 

My eyes widen as it flips around in mid air and lands on its paws and not on its face. I hear a series of rapid thumps and strikes. I can't really spare a moment to turn my attention away from the demon in front of me but I do catch a glimpse of one of the sheep sliding across the concrete on its back. The demon and I close again quickly, its sword smacking into my staff.

CRACK! CRACK! CRACK! Its attacks come rapidly in a pattern of low, low, then high. I can tell it’s trying to draw me into a pattern, trying to get me to drop my guard for just a moment. On the next pass I duck the high swing and jam the head of my staff into its gut. The runes on my staff are already lighting up with the spell. 

“ FOR…..” The breath is knocked out of me as the demon lets go of the sword hilt with its right paw and grabs my staff. It continues the rotation around and flings me into the duct work. 

“ RIFLETTUM!“ I shout, popping a shield in place just in time to avoid being turnedinto a seared fox kabob. The heat from the stream of fire is so great that it radiates through the shield, causing me to squint. I swallow nervously just before the stream of fire stops and a titanic wave of force slams into my shield, knocking me back into the duct work.

“ You insignificant whelp….” the demon starts to sneer at me just as Judy jumps up from behind him and plants both of her hind paws into the back of his head. She rebounds back and slams a small fist square into the jaw of one of the closing sheep. The sheep goes down in a tumbling mess of limbs and its jaw audibly pops lose. Judy rolls as her momentum takes her past the stricken sheep and pops back up onto her paws, grinning as she faces off against the other two. 

The demon wearing Morgan’s body growls as he stumbles. The seething hate in his eyes starts to turn from me to Judy as I climb back up to my paws. I fling my right paw forward with a shout of “FUEGO!” 

The ball of fire catches the wolf off guard and sears the fur away from the right side of its face. He slowly turns his head to regard me. “You’re going to pay for that….”

I close the distance between us, my staff swinging for the other side of its face. It catches the swing with its free paw and flings me away. I roll, coming up to my knees, but before I can get a spell off I'm slammed into something hard and my vision swims as I struggle for breath. “To think you could have been my equal….” I vaguely hear the shattering of glass as a crack of lightning hits the magical construct, followed closely by the death scream of one of the sheep. My ribs crack then shatter against the strain and I scream in pain. 

I’m thrown and I roll to a stop on my side. It becomes hard and extremely painful to breathe. I can see the storm clouds to the south like a wall of angry icy death. With my ear pressed to the concrete I can make out the vague sound of an alarm buzzing somewhere below. I mumble a phrase of quasi Latin and while the pain subsides a bit it doesn't get any easier to breathe. I cough once and whine as I cough up blood. It hurts so much….. I try to rise, to die on my paws, but I barely make it up to my knees before collapsing again onto my back.

“ NICK!” Judy screams and runs over to me. I can feel her paws on me and see the look of horror in her eyes as shes sees my caved in chest; out of the corner of my eye I see the descending sword aimed right at her neck. “No….” I mutter and with what little strength is left to me I cast a shield over us, anchoring it to the concrete. 

I can see her lips moving but can’t hear anything. The world is fading and if I don't do something, anything, we are going to die here. Cotton will be without a mother and having grown up without mine I don't wish that on any kit. That's when I hear it, the song that I've been ignore the entire time: power. I just have to reach out and take it. The power to destroy my enemies. The power to save Judy.

I can feel the heat being poured into my weakening shield. I cough again and blood splatters on the concrete as my right paw creeps over my head. I can feel the blue powder on my finger pads and I'm grateful that Judy hasn’t noticed the movement until I drag my paw down in front of my face. She tries to stop me but it's too late.

Power, raw untamed power, pours into my veins. The world is tainted blue as it forces my third eye open and I look up at Judy and into the face of an angel. I reach out to my shield and poor power into it and then I mutter. “Forzare.” 

The shield explodes scouring the top of the wall. I hear the last of the sheep yell “BAAAAaaaaa”; that slowly fades off into the distance before it’s swallowed by the strengthening storm. I rise slowly to my paws, glaring at the demon in Morgan’s body as it starts to rise as well. 

I point the head of my staff at it and blast it into the concrete wall that it had just pinned me to moments before. I take one step, then another, pouring power and hate into it as I close the distance. The demon’s muzzle starts to move but I don’t hear a thing; I do feel the lightning bolt as it searches for the path down and raise my right paw, calling to it. 

I grin as the bolt of lightning arches from the sky and into my paw as I shape it with my will into a long thin blade of arcing electricity of will and hate and slam it into the demon’s chest, pinning it to the wall. 

Something below us explodes, causing the wall to shudder;I turn to look at Judy, who looks at me wide eyed, her nose twitching rapidly. I cough again, splattering blood onto the concrete as I close the distance between us. I wrap my right arm around us as I pour energy into a spell, picturing a safe place. I pour more energy into it as magic swirls and sparkles around us. I can see shards of ice start to pelt the weather wall. 

With all of my will, I shove all of the energy I have left,into the spell. We vanish from the top of the wall as I mutter one final word. “Help.”


	9. Chapter 8

# Chapter 8

We appear in a flash of light and a crack of sound in front of my fireplace. My staff clatters to the floor as I wrap both arms around Judy and collapse onto the floor, dragging her down with me. I’m dying and I know it; breathing is becoming increasingly difficult and blood bubbles in my chest. 

I can smell cherries…. Karma is coming for me. This knowledge is oddly comforting, maybe my scales have finally balanced for the better. 

“ I’m…” I cough up more blood, “sorry.” I force my eyes open one last time. I can see the look of fear on Judy's face. Her lips are moving but I can’t hear anything other than a loud roaring in my ears. The world still has a light blue tint but her eyes are a bright purple; it’s the only other color left in the world. 

I feel a paw touch my forehead lightly. “Rest Nicholas.” The command rings through the haze and having no other choice I close my eyes. 

I float limply for some time in a blue inky blackness;it’s oddly comforting. My limbs hang loosely under me and I can't lift my head. Not that there’s anything to see and not that I really want to. I'm warm and comfortable and it just lulls my eyes closed. 

“ Nicholas…..” a far off voice calls, and I ignore it.

“ Nicholas…” came the call a second time. “Come on, up and at ‘em sleepy fox! We have a lot to talk about.”

“ Don’t wanna…” I mumble. “Besides, I'm dead.”

“ No, no you’re not.” I crack my eye open and am met with a tall grassy plain. I feel soft paws stroke the fur between my ears and I relax. “You almost did though.”

The stroking continues for some time. I can feel thighs under my chin but I'm content. I can tell it’s a rabbit and can only assume at this point that it’s Serendipity. 

“ I have to ask, why did you go to such great lengths to save her?”

“ Us; she held her own against three possessed sheep.” 

“ Her,” she corrects me again. There is no judgment or anything in her voice.

I swallow and turn over from where I lay on my stomach. The sky is a light blue with white fluffy clouds. Serendipity has taken a page out of Carrot’s fashion manual and is wearing country bunkin wear. Her blouse is a bright yellow and I can hear the scratchiness of my fur on her jeans. 

“ I honestly didn’t know I could do that. I just wanted to inconvenience whatever that was in hope of getting Judy clear.”

“ Your deflecting. Why Nicholas?”

“ Cotton,” I answer after a few moments. “I know what it's like to grow up without a mother, so if I had to choose?” I shrug.

“ I see,” she answers, continuing to stroke the fur between my ears.

I close my eyes again and lace my fingers together on my stomach as I relax. There is a light breeze that rustles the grass and brings with it the faint scent of lavender. 

“ So I'm not dead?” 

“ No, Karma is healing your body.” Her paw pauses for a moment. “Judith is fine before you ask.”

“ Good.”

“ What do you wish for?” Again there is no judgment in her voice.

“ If you asked me a month ago I would have told you enough money to live the rest of my life comfortably and conduct my experiments in peace.”

“ And now?” I open my eyes to see her smiling down at me. 

“ I don't want to be alone.”

She nods and looks down at me thoughtfully. “A good honest answer.” She gets a far away look on her face. “Squeeze your right paw Nicholas.”

I unlace my paws and do as I'm told, frowning and then smiling as I feel like there’s a smaller paw inside mine.

“ If you don't want to be alone then you need to learn to control your magic better.”

“ I control my magic just fine….”

“ Do you?” she’ asks. “You cause havoc wherever you go.” She sighs. “But it’s not really your fault. The farther removed mammals are from the first of us magic users the more masters only taught their apprentices the bare basics.”

I frown deeply. “I thought my grandfather was pretty thorough in my education.”

“ It’s not even his fault. His master before him and so on,” she explains. “He did teach you enough that you’ve only almost killed yourself.”

“ Judy and Cotton are going to want nice things, they would be happy for a while but Cotton will need the conveniences of a modern education,” she continues.

I tense. “I can't give them that.”

“ Right now? No.” She waves her paw over me. An illusion sprung to life over my stomach: a fox surrounded by an orb. “Picture your magic as a ball that surrounds you. Right now it extends far out from you, and in a battle that’s fine; it gives you advantages.”

“ You mean I can compress it?” I ask. 

She nods. “Control; it can be as big or as small as you need it to be, but you have to learn control.”

“ How?” 

She smiles down at me. “ You’re a smart boy, you’ll figure it out. It will take a lot of practice but you’ll get it.” Her eyes get a far away look again. “Our time here is limited and you have things you must do. But promise me when you do figure it out to teach it to your apprentice.”

I pause. “I’ve never thought about having an apprentice before.”

“ You never know what the future will bring Nicholas. Will you do as I ask?”

“ I will.”

“ Good boy; now wake up.”

My eyes snap open and I'm greeted by the worried expression and twitching nose on Judy’s face. 

“ Nick!” she shouts, then suddenly wraps me in a tight hug followed quickly by a slug to the shoulder. “Don't you ever do that to me again!” She slugs me again and I wince.

“ Fluff?” 

“ YOU DIED!” she yells at me. I can see the watery beginnings of tears in the corners of her eyes before she buries her face back against my shirt. “YOU DIED NICK!”

I wrap my arms around her gently. I'm surprised when she breaks down and starts to sob. “I’m not dead though.”

“ Only because Karma said you still have work to do.” It came out just barely above a whisper. “How do you feel?” she asks after a few moments. 

“ Surprisingly ok.” A silence hangs between us. 

It’s broken when she finally asks. “So does Serendipity exist as well?” 

I grin and tilt my head to the side as I look down at her. “Who do you think told me you like red tulips?” 

She huffs. “Did she tell you anything else?”

I think about it for a moment. “You should call your parents.” 

“ Did she?”

“ No, no she didn’t, but you should.” 

“ Nick….”

I take a deep breath. “Listen to me on this just this once and I’ll drop it ok?”

“ Ok…. fine.”

“ I didn’t know my mom; I would have loved to but she just walked away, poof.” I pause and look down at her. “But my dad? Judy, I would give anything to talk to my dad for five more minutes, even if it was just to hear him talk about some illusion or magic trick. I’m not telling you to go out and call right now. Just think about it ok?”

She huffs against my chest. “Fine, I'll think about it.”

“ That's all I ask.” 

We lay quietly for some time. I honestly start to think that she’s gone to sleep when she squeezes my chest and once again I am amazed that there’s no pain. 

“ You need to go get cleaned up and then we need to go get Cotton,” Judy says as she gets up off of me and I swing my legs over the edge of the couch to sit up. She’s right; I can smell the faint coppery undertone of dried blood. But overall I feel surprisingly well for someone who should by all accounts be dead. 

I stand and walk over to the bathroom, pausing just long enough to get clean clothes out of my dresser drawer of the. Once inside the bathroom I take a good long look in the mirror. The fur of my muzzle and neck are coated in blood. It’s splattered here and there along my shirt as well. Unbuttoning my shirt and tossing it aside I realize that the blood wasn’t so much splattered on it as it was soaked through. 

I close my eyes and pour forth just a bit of my innate power. “Thank you Karma.” I don't expect a response nor do I get one. I'm sure she will make her displeasure at having to heal me known to me in her own good time. I take one last look at myself in the mirror before reaching over and turning on the hot water. 

I take one more good look at myself in the mirror. Morgan is strong and good with his sword, but holy hells…. I frown as memories of power flash before my eyes. I shiver as I stare at myself in the mirror and flex my right paw, the memory of a lightening bolt in it courses through my mind. 

“ Control, control, you must learn control,” I hear a wise Muppet say in my head, and smile.

It’s followed quickly by my grandfather's grizzled voice. “Son, nothing worth having ever comes easy. And if it's easy it might not be worth having.”

I nod at myself and climb into the shower. I stand under the hot spray as it washes down over my head. I glance down at my feet to see a river of red running between them and once again send a thank you up to Karma before grabbing my fur shampoo. 

Fifteen minutes later the water running off of me is finally clear and I step out of the shower. I let it run briefly as I look at my russet fur in the mirror, making sure it’s its normally vibrant orange instead of red. I dry myself thoroughly with an over-sized towel, making sure to get all the moisture out of my coat before hanging it back up to dry. 

I emerge from the bathroom a few minutes later fully dressed and ready to go. I take my blood soaked shirt and throw it into the back of the fireplace. As the fire consumes it I search through my pants pockets, removing my wallet and the ZPD issued pager. Looking at the pager I see it still lights up so I assume it’s working. Finding nothing else of value in my pants I toss them into the fire as well. While they might be able to be cleaned the last thing I need is for some blood mage or something to get ahold of even a dried sample of my blood. I just hope that I didn’t leave much on top of the wall or Karma is looking out for me. Either way it means I'm going to have to go back up there.

“ Ok Fluff I'm ready to go.”

“ About time; you preen more than my sisters.” 

I shrug. “Yeah well I bet your sisters never had to wash what I did out of my fur.”

“ I hope not; let’s get going Slick,” she says as she opens the apartment door and a cold gust of wind blows inside.

“ Sweet cheese and crackers….” She shivers as I reach behind the door and grab a heavy jacket. 

“ Do you have a coat?” 

“ No I haven’t been issued one yet and my coats were destroyed with my house.” 

“ Will you be ok?”

She nods and steps outside as I zip up my jacket. I frown as I follow her outside.

Snow is starting to pile here and there as another cold gust of wind rips down the alleyway between our apartment building and the remains of the building adjacent to it. It only gets worse as we step from between the buildings and onto the street proper. The sky is an angry swirling mix of black and dark green clouds and wind tears down the street between the buildings, which only seems to funnel it and make it more directed. Patches of ice can already be seen forming on the roadway. Cars skid here and there with the drivers unprepared for a sudden wintry onslaught in early summer.

As we trudge our way up the street I glance down at Judy. She’s putting on a brave face but I can tell the cold is getting to her. Hell, the wind is cutting through my heavy jacket and nearly chilling me to the bone. Thankfully I still have the tail end of my winter coat so it’s not nearly as bad as it could be. Fluff doesn't have a jacket and from the looks of it her coat is very firmly in the grips of summer. 

I glance around us. Foot traffic other than us is nonexistent and the cars that are still on the road are having enough trouble staying on the road. I take a deep breath and cast a quick shield in front of us, blocking most of the wind and once again give a quick thanks to Karma as my magic responds. I also cast my ignore spell so if anyone happens to look our way hopefully they don't notice the area where the weather isn’t affecting us as much. 

Judy stumbles a bit as the wind no longer pushes back against her and glances up at me. I give her a wan smile but don't say much, as keeping both spells going at the same time is taxing on my concentration.

“ Thanks.”

The rest of the walk to HEC passes relatively quickly. It's still cold but not nearly as cold with the reduced wind chill. Judy still shivers but I'm not as concerned about her exposure, it being a relatively short walk back to the apartment from HEC. 

The sound of screeching tires and crunching metal almost makes me break my concentration. Thankfully it's a relatively low speed crash. The mammal inside the small SUV looks more stunned than anything. Judy looks toward the SUV for a moment before looking up at me and nodding as she turns her attention back toward getting to HEC.

Traffic in front of HEC is at a standstill due to a four car pile up that we can just make out down the street. Which made it easy to dart across the street without worrying about having to play Frogger. I drop the spells with a sigh of relief as soon as we make it past the perimeter wall of HEC.

“ Come on Nick, I'm not letting you stand out here in this.” Judy grabs my paw and pulls me toward the building.

“ But…”

“ Oh come on, is the Big Fox Wizard afraid of a bunch of little kits?” she sasses at me.

I don’t really put up much of a fight and let her pull me into HEC. I must admit that I’ve been partially curious as to what the inside of this place looks like. But I'm pretty sure it has more to do with it being freezing cold outside. Besides, if she doesn’t care what it might do to her image dragging a fox inside to pick up her kit then why should I care?

I'm not sure really what I expected as I follow Judy into HEC. But the place has a warm inviting feel; it’s painted in bright colors with rainbows arcing between smiling clouds. A matronly looking kangaroo sits behind a curved receptionist desk. 

“ G’day Miss Hopps, we’ve been trying to get ahold of you; with the sudden weather wall malfunction we’re sending all the little ones home as soon as possible.“ 

“ Sorry Miss Kanga, ummmm…” She looks up at me then back to Miss Kanga.

“ Her cell phone doesn’t get very good reception in our office,” I fill in for her.

Judy nods. “We rushed over here as soon as I got the message.”

“ And you must be Mr. Nick….” Miss Kanga eyes me. “Little Cotton has told us all so much about you.”

I crack a smug smile. “That would be me yes…”

“ Well Mr. Nick, whatever it is you’re doing is really helping that little bun and her imagination; my lordy, her imagination!” Miss Kanga grins at me. “She goes on and on about magic and what not but that's ok having an active imagination is healthy at her age.”

Judy grins at me. “Come on Nick, let’s go collect your little fan.”

“ Lead the way, Fluff.”

“ I’ll mark her as picked up.” I grin as we head down one of the halls when Miss Kanga adds, “Now why did this thing lock up?”

I stuff my paws into my pockets as we make our way down the hall. I'm actually impressed, as most of the other parents don’t even spare me a second glance. Might be my leaning on the wall outside got them accustomed to me, or maybe they just have other things on their minds, like the massive traffic jam out front.

I can't help the grin on my face as I hear an all too familiar call. “Mr. Nick!” 

I go “oof” when I catch the bunny missile. “Have a good day Cotton Ball?” 

“ It's snowing Mr. Nick!” 

“ That it is Cotton Ball.” I lean my head closer to hers. “Maybe after the weather clears a bit we can make a Snow Mammal in the park.”

“ Ahhh, you must be the famous Mr. Nick.” My attention is pulled from Cotton to a middle aged female raccoon. She stands a little taller than Judy and is wearing a dress shirt and slacks. She smiles up at me with no judgment in her features. “Cotton has told us much about you, all good things I assure you.” 

“ Really?” I raise an eyebrow.

“ Cotton you should go get your backpack,” Judy says. “We need to get going.” 

“ Ok!” Cotton exclaims happily and darts off to get it as soon as her paws touch the floor. 

“ Miss Eveningbloom, this is Nick Wilde, my partner at the ZPD,” Judy introduces me. 

“ Partner? From the way Cotton talks it sounds like you two are more than that.” Miss Eveningbloom grins at us. I catch just a hint of red in Judy’s inner ears as they fall down her back. 

“ Well we are roommates at the moment.” I supply.

“ Well whatever it is you two are it’s your business. I just want to point out that whatever that is has been a boon to Cotton’s schooling and behavior. She's paying better attention in class, is more sociable, and her reading has improved significantly.” 

“ Really?” Judy asks sounding surprised.

Miss Eveningbloom nods, “It's been very noticeable.” 

“ Hear that Slick? You’re a positive influence.” Judy beams up at me as Cotton comes skipping back over to us. I just smile as I mull that over. “Ready to go kitto?” 

Cotton nods her head. “Bye guys!” she says to the kits left in the room as she reaches up and grabs my paw. I follow Judy back out of the class and down the hall. We have to dodge around even more mammals than before, and more than a few of them are wearing a ZPD uniform. 

“ Ohhhhh….” Cotton drones as we pause at the door. The snow isn’t falling in flakes as much as it’s falling in sheets. I can’t even make out the wall that marks the boundary of the school. We can see where it’s starting to pile up on the sidewalk.

“ We need to hurry; it’s only getting worse out there,” Judy says as she opens the door. A gust of cold wind tears through the lobby. I look down at Cotton and frown before looking back out side.

“ Carrots wait,” I say as I unzip my jacket and Judy steps back inside. 

I gather Cotton up and stuff her into my jacket; she squeaks in surprise and sticks her head out of the top after I get it zipped up. Judy smirks at us as Cotton sticks her head out and her ears end up on either side of my muzzle. 

“ Ok now are we ready?” Judy asks.

“ As soon as Cotton lowers her ears so I can see.”

“ Sorry, Mr. Nick….” Cotton pulls her ears down so I can see again.

“ Ok Fluff lead the way.”

Stepping outside is a lot like stepping into a frozen hell. The wind howls as it pelts us with sheets of falling snow and sleet. I instantly cast my shield, not even bothering with the ignore us spell as I'm pretty sure no one could make us out in the storm anyway.

We make our way back across the street between what I'm pretty sure are the same set of cars as before. The wind is smacking into my shield hard enough for it to be putting some strain on me. I swallow nervously as we keep putting one paw in front of the other, thankful that the cover of the shield allows us to stick together. It does nothing about the bone chilling cold though and I can feel frost starting to form around my muzzle. Cotton smartly ducks down into my coat but Judy doesn't have the luxury. She shivers and rubs her paws along her arms. 

I look up and see the snow starting to pile on top of the dome of the shield around us and I pause for a moment to shake it off. My ears perk up and rotate around as I hear something loudly crunching snow off to my right and behind me. 

Judy turns and looks at me; the snow around us brightens slightly and I have just enough time to anchor the shield to the sidewalk under the snow before a large mammal SUV plows into it. I wrap an arm protectively around Cotton as I grunt from the force of the impact but don't move. The headlights of the SUV flicker once and then die. Looking up I see the front of the SUV caved around us and look to Judy, who looks at me. 

“ Biscuits and gravy Nick, are you ok?” 

“ Yeah, we’re ok.”

We hear the creaking of a stressed and rusty hinge as a car door opens. “Please don't let me have hit mammals…. Please don't let me have hit mammals” an obviously worried feminine voice can be heard saying. I cast my camouflage spell over us and start trudging away from the accident, gathering Judy up as we pass her. 

“ But…” she starts.

“ Shhh,” I remind her as we keep going, “quiet, we need to get out of this weather; she’s okay but you’re not going to last in this, Fluff.”

She looks back over her shoulder once then nods up at me. The rest of the walk home passes without incident. 

Judy shivers uncontrollably as we stumble into the apartment. I snap my fingers, relighting the fireplace and the candles around the room. Judy sheds her chest plate and grabs the blanket off of the arm chair, huddling in front of the fireplace. I unzip my coat, cradling a soundly sleeping Cotton to my chest. I gently slip her backpack off of her back and lay her down onto the couch. 

“ Sooo cold….” Judy shivers in front of the fireplace. I dump my coat onto the arm chair and sit down behind her, pulling her back toward me and wrapping my arms around her. She turns in my arms and buries her face against my chest. My paw softly strokes her cold ears and my tail wraps around to rest in her lap. 

I watch the fire as the wind howls between the buildings. The storm had done nothing but intensify on the short trip home and if the sound outside is any indication the upward trend is continuing.

Slowly her shivering slows and stops. I start to think that she’s asleep as well but her paws move from under the blanket to wrap around my chest. “Thank you.” 

“ For?”

“ Getting us home.”

“ Well I couldn’t let my partner become a bunny shaped icicle now could I?” She snorts at me. “In all seriousness though, I'm sorry I caused that.”

“ Nick, you were in a fight for your life; I don’t think you can be blamed.”

“ I only hope Chief Buffalo Butt sees it the same way.”

“ Sweet cheese and crackers I need to call in!” She starts to move to get up but I hold her in my lap. 

“ Not yet.” She looks up at me for a moment then nods, putting her head back on my chest. 

“ Not yet,” she agrees. She wraps her arms once again around my chest, or as much of it as she could. I relax and sigh contentedly. Not counting night time cuddles it’s been a long time since I have been this close to another mammal. It’s nice. Actually it's more than that; it's comforting. 

“ Nick can I ask you a question?” 

“ You just did but sure.” 

One of her paws leaves my chest to lightly thump against me. 

“ Nick this is serious!” She thumps me even harder this time. 

I wince slightly. “Ok, ok Judy, ask your question.”

“ Why won't you look me in the eyes?”


	10. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pandora peer pressured me into releasing this a few hours early so enjoy!

# Chapter 9

This is the part where the clock ticks and the seconds pass from when she asked her question. Except I don't have a clock; even the mechanical ones don't fare well around me. But the fire snaps and crackles in the fireplace. Of all the questions she could have asked me it had to be that one. Maybe I'm not as sly as I would like to think I am.

“Know what, never…..” she starts, pulling me out of my thoughts.

“Just give me a moment Fluff, you caught me off guard.”

She nods and looks up at me, waiting. 

“It has nothing to do with you,” I start shakily. “It’s a side effect of being able to do magic.”

“How?”

“The eyes are literally a gateway to one’s soul. If I look into your eyes I will see everything that makes you. The good, the bad, and the ugly, and it's a two way street. You’d see everything about me as well, and we’ll remember it perfectly for the rest of our lives.”

“Oh….”

“It’s frighteningly intimate.”

“You sound like you know from experience.”

“I do.” 

“What happened?” The question is innocently asked, coming from a place of concern. 

I close my eyes and let my paw travel down her ears one more time. They are velvety soft. “From the time I was 13 years old until I completed my apprenticeship I lived on my grandfather's farm outside of Podunk.”

Judy groans. “Wait, you’re telling me…..”

“Yep; when you told me that Podunk is in Deerbrook county I already knew that.”

“So have you been to Bunnyburrow?” 

“No, I have not. My grandfather mostly sold his produce and chickens in Podunk. But that was only what we didn’t need for ourselves. We mostly raised chickens but had a few berry patches as well. I loved eating blueberries fresh off of the bush.” 

Judy nods. “My family grows a lot of produce; we have a fairly large field of blueberry bushes. But how did you guys pick them with only the two of you?”

“My grandfather hired a lot of seasonal and transient workers at harvest time.”

“I see.”

“It was the summer before I turned 19. He hired a family of foxes. They worked hard and they had a daughter about my age.” I sigh at the memories. “Over the summer we became close. I spent all the time with her that I could outside of my studies. Looking up the stars, swimming in the river, just generally being young dumb kits. Lots of late nights and missed sleep.”

“Sounds like you liked her a lot.”

“I did; I thought she was the one for me.”

“What happened?”

“We locked eyes just before we were about to....” I shrug. “We gazed on each other’s souls. She had a beautiful soul. Full of love, caring, and understanding tinged a bit with fear and uncertainty. I saw the events of her life and she saw mine.” 

“I take it that didn't go so well.”

I snort. “That's an understatement. Whatever she saw in my soul caused her to kick me in the face and run. I have no idea what she told her parents but they left that night before dawn. The last I could find anything about her was a few years ago. She’d made her way to Europe and joined a convent there.” 

She doesn't say anything; honestly nothing needed to be said at that point, as she rests her head against my chest. The memories hurt more than I expect them to as tears streak down my face. Her arms tighten around me.

“That was when you were 19?” 

“Yeah.”

“Anyone since?”

I smile. “Other than this one rabbit and her kit?”

Judy snorts. 

“Nope. I haven't been close to anyone since then.”

“Sounds lonely.” 

I shrug. “It's getting better.”

“Thank you for telling me.” 

“I’m looking forward to our date on Saturday.”

She huffs. “Me too, but it might be postponed due to some loon causing a weather wall malfunction.” 

“Well, in the loon’s defense he was only trying to save his partner’s life.”

Judy snorts. “Speaking of partners, I really need to go check in with Bogo.”

“Ok.” I don't unwrap my arms from around her. 

“I mean it Nick, I need to get up.” I nod and unwrap my arms from around her as she stands. I watch her walk over to the door and look back at me before she slips out in a gust of cold wind. 

Standing, I walk over to where Cotton is still resting on the couch and sit down beside her. The sudden smell of cherries fills the room and I tense.

“Nicholas,” comes the honey poured over a violin voice that I have come to associate with Karma. 

I look down at Cotton and swallow nervously. “Karma; thank you for healing me.”

She drapes herself into the arm chair as she looks at me. “You still have much to do.” Her bright orange eyes regard me almost kindly. “You were not prepared today.”

I frown as I think back to my fight with Morgan. “That wasn’t a demon was it?” I look down at Cotton and smooth back her ears gently.

“No.” The answer is simple and draws my attention with it.

I swallow nervously. “One of the Others?”

She nods. “She has tipped her paw and will go into hiding for a bit. It’s good; it gives you time to become more prepared.”

“Serendipity said I need to learn control, said I could compress my magic’s sphere of influence of.” I regard her as she nods. “Why didn’t you teach me that?”

She smiles at me. “Why do I do anything?” she asks as she dissipates into the gust of wind that enters the apartment as Judy opens the door. I’m left thinking, _Why indeed?_

There was a knowing look on her face as she closed the door . “Karma was here.” I nod.

“How was your conversation with Bogo?”

“Short,” she answers. “We’re to hole up here for a few days. He also told me that they have crews working on bringing back up systems online at the weather wall.”

I sigh. “So we still have jobs?” She walks across the room, picking up her chest plate and unbuckling her utility belt from around her waist. 

“We’ll see when we go back to the office.” She puts her side arms into the gun safe and spins the dial, locking it. “What did Karma have to say?”

“We may have a reprieve from what's behind this for a little bit.” 

“Well that's good, since I think there’s about to be some unpaid time off in our near future,” Judy says as she gathers up a change of clothes.

“That bad?” 

“Actually, you'll end up with unpaid time off.” She looks over at me. “I'm probably going to be back on parking duty for a while.”

I nod. “Could be worse.” 

She nods. “I'll be back; going to go change.”

The rest of the afternoon is spent relatively quietly. Well, as quietly as a giggling bunny can let it be. As the wind howls and snow and sleet pelts a good portion of the city, we are warm and safe in my apartment. 

One of the benefits of living the way I do is we don’t even notice when our block, along with large swaths of Sahara Square, lost power. Nope, I was in the middle of getting my tail handed to me by a pint sized real estate tycoon. Don't let her cute demeanor fool you, she is down right ruthless. 

And while large swaths of the city can’t even get a pizza delivered we are enjoying home cooked meals. I shouldn’t be here. I should have died on top of the weather wall or on my living area floor. That knowledge makes these moments even more special to me. If the looks are anything to go by, then I suspect it does for Judy as well. 

It takes them three days to get the weather back under control, and then another two to control melt the accumulated snow in a manner that doesn't overwhelm the cities drainage.

Five days spent holed up in my apartment with two rabbits. I enjoyed it immensely. 

This not so much. I feel a bit of trepidation as we walk into the Precinct 1 building after dropping Cotton off at school. In some ways it feels like we’re walking into the lion's den with steaks strapped to our bodies in place of armor. 

“Hey guys…” Clawhauser greets us. “Uhhh….”

“HOPPS! WILDE! IN MY OFFICE NOW!” Chief Bogo bellows from the second floor. 

“Yeah… that.” Clawhauser said as he picks up a doughnut. “Sorry, was going to try to warn you.”

“Thanks Clawhauser, you tried,” Judy tells him as we walk past, my staff clinking against the tile floor.

“Yeah, thanks Spots!” I call as I keep pace with her. 

Almost as if she can read my mind we take the curving stairs up to the second floor, not trusting the elevator. It’s probably for the best at the moment anyway; while I'm not overly worried about this, I'm not exactly what one would call happy about it either. My father had a saying for times like this: It will be what it will be. 

The walk down the hallway is relatively short. We can see the Chief’s door already open, waiting for us to be swallowed into the depths of untold despair. 

We enter the office. The only light in the room is coming from the windows behind the Chief. I push the door shut without even being told to. 

I turn and regard Chief Bogo. His large furrowed brows and irate scowl tell me much about his mood. His dark brown eyes appear almost red. “Sit.” The command sounds like it’s being ground out of gravel and poured over concrete. His voice sounds a bit off, like he’s spent the last few days yelling at everyone.

The buffalo’s nostrils flare as I climb up into the chair beside Judy. His eyes move back and forth between us. “23.5 million dollars in damages.” Bogo’s voice is low and threatening. “Not counting the economical effects of essentially three districts of the city being shut down for five days.” 

“Chief?” Judy asks.

“Not a word Hopps…” Bogo says threateningly. “You two are lucky; other than the three sheep in stolen police uniforms on or….” He grimaces. “near the weather wall, no deaths.”

I ignore the Chiefs death glare as I ask. “What about a wolf?” 

“Wolf?” Bogo raises an eyebrow. “There was nothing of a wolf up there. What happened?”

“We went out for lunch last Tuesday and received a page from Clawhauser. I called him and he told me that a search team from the Meadowlands had found something and we were to go to Section AA-113 between Tundra Town and Sahara Square. We were met at the base of the wall by three sheep and escorted to the top.” Judy looks at me. 

“They showed us a circle where part of the Third Eye drug was being manufactured using lightening bolts as a power source. While I was looking into how to disarm the circle we were approached by Donald Morgan, a Warden of the White Council.” I watch the Chief’s face. “Morgan was possessed by something.”

“Another demon?” 

“No, worse.” 

“What could be worse than a demon?” I can hear the surprise in Judy’s voice.

I eye Bogo, who glares daggers at me. “They have no name and are only known to the council as Others.”

“Others?” The question came in two tone stereo. 

I nod. “Not much is known of them and the study of them is forbidden. Summoning one is a death sentence.”

“Why?” 

“Because they are not of our world. A demon at least starts out as a mammal or the soul of a mammal. They have fairly simple desires, the stronest of which is not to go back to hell.” I pause for a moment as I gather my thoughts. Others though? Others, from my understanding, are not even of our dimension; they’re not even mammal.” 

“Why do you think it was one of these…Others?” I can hear the skepticism in Bogo’s voice. Hell, I can't blame the old bull.

“Because demons can only possess one mammal at a time.” 

“Wait, you’re saying whatever possessed Morgan also possessed the sheep?”

I nod. “I’m willing to bet those sheep might be able to lead us to who ordered the killing out in the forest.”

Bogo’s chair creaks as he leans back. I can feel his eyes on me. “I thought you banished the demon…”

“I banished a demon, yes.”I sigh. “Chief, 92 mammals lost their lives, and the soul is the most powerful form of magic in existence. They brought an Other here and that thing brought Memnoth over kicking and screaming.”

“Could it bring more demons here?” 

I shrug. “Stands to reason, but if the fight on the weather wall is anything to go by, I'm not sure it would need to.”

“Great, just what I need,” Bogo snorts as he laces his fingers together and leans forward once again. “So how did this result in 24 million in damages to the weather wall and the city?”

“Morgan and I fought.”

“Did you try to tranq him?” Bogo’s eyes drift down to Judy. 

“I put two into him and he didn’t go down.”

I nod. “And since he didn’t go down from the damage I caused him it’s fairly safe to assume he’s still running around out there.”

“What did you do to him?”

I shrug. “I rammed a lightening bolt into his chest.”

“Chief, it’s not that simple; Nick alm…no, he died….” Judy says quietly.

Bogo looks between us. “Is that true?”

“I got better.”

Bogo snorts. “How do you get better from dying?” 

I place my paw on Judy’s knee before she can answer. “A little bit of luck and divine intervention.” 

“Fucking hell,” The Cape buffalo closes his eyes and pinches the bridge of his nose. “I guess that explains the blood that we found.”

I nod. “It’s likely mine.”

“I take it that’s how you got off the wall as well?” 

Judy shakes her head. “Nick got us off the wall.”

I eye the buffalo for a moment. “I took some of the Third Eye….”

“YOU WHAT!” 

“I was dying and couldn’t see any possible way out for Judy. Morgan was about to chop her in half with his sword and I’d already used the last of my strength to cast a shield. All my other options had been exhausted and it was right there.” 

Bogo’s nostrils flair. “Considering you’re coherent at the moment I'm taking it..divine intervention helped with that as well?” 

I shrug. 

“Fucking hells, next you’re going to tell me that there’s a dragon living on 43rd.”

“Actually it’s 4 Madison, the Penthouse,” I correct.

Bogo stares at me. 

“What?” I shrug. “43rd is a dump.”

Bogo groans and stands up, looking out the windows behind his desk. “World is getting stranger by the day.”

“It's no different than it was before,” Judy says meaningfully. “We’re just more aware of it now.” I can’t help the smug grin from spreading on my face from hearing her quote me.

Bogo snorts. “That may be the case.” He pauses before turning and looking at us. “Can you track it?”

“Did you get a sample of Morgan’s fur?” 

Bogo shakes his head.

“Then I can’t track him.” 

Bogo leans against the credenza behind his desk and crosses his massive arms. “That is unfortunate.” He huffs. “I’ve had the Chairmammal of the City Security Council demanding the badges of the responding officers.” 

I could hear Judy gulp beside me. “But Chief, we did nothing wrong…”

“I didn't say you did Hopps; in fact I happen to agree with you.”

“You what?” I can’t keep the surprise out of my voice.

“I agree with you; given the circumstances, minus your…. collateral damage, you two did the best you could.” 

Judy and I look at each other before looking back at the Chief. 

“I’ll work on keeping the Assistant Mayor off of your tails but in the meantime Hopps, parking duty” Bogo says sternly.

“But sir….”

“Relax Hopps, it's just for a week. Marabell is taking leave and I'm short hoofed until the greenhorns get in next week.” He turns and looks at me. “As a consultant I can’t give you parking duty, so you’re suspended for the week until Hopps can return to her normal duties.”

It’s strange as we separate that morning and I step outside of the ZPD building once again. The sun shines on my face as I make my way down the street toward home. It’s not like I have a lot to do, so I take my time and enjoy the walk and the hustle and bustle of the city around me. But really this is the first time that I’ve been truly alone in weeks.

It also started a strange little routine, one that I fell into gladly. For that week it became my responsibility to take Cotton to and pick her up from daycare on my own. I got a few strange looks, but Mrs. Roo the Kangaroo receptionist and Mrs. Eveningbloom always welcomed me with a smile and Cotton seemed to genuinely enjoy it. 

I spent the rest of my time doing some minor experiments and trying to compress the sphere of influence of my magic. Trust me when I say it was some of the hardest work that I’ve put into my magic in years. Also highly monotonous and boring if I have to be honest with you. I would have welcomed a green Muppet telling me how I was failing and having me stand on my head to soften it. But alas I had to go it mostly alone. I say mostly because every so often I would catch a whiff of cherries, so I know Karma was at least keeping tabs on me. 

I don’t really catch a break until mid afternoon that Friday. I’ve been sitting near a newspaper stand in the park that Cotton enjoys playing at. The attendant there has a radio that he listens to. Mostly this last week it’s been static filled while I was around. I’ve taken up doing meditation exercises in the grass and then attempting to compress the sphere of influence.

Most of the time the static has gotten worse but then for a moment the radio clears and for the first time in over a decade I hear music. Well, I'm not sure I would call what was coming out of the radio’s speakers music. But it was noise other than static. It even has a beat to it, though not one that would say was enjoyable. 

“Come on Slick!” Judy says excitedly as she drags me down the sidewalk on the evening of our date. “You’re going to love this I just know it.” 

I smile down at her. I honestly can't help it; her energy is infectious. It reminds me of how I was just before I got a big surprise. Like, I still remember when my dad bought me the first Nintendog Gameboy, or when I got to see Star Wars for the first time at a cheap theater in a small town in Northern Texpaws.

The area of the city she leads me to is well lived in. I don’t mean to say it’s run down, because it’s not, but clearly the tourist dollars don't make it this far. Everything is a bit on the older side of things and while the paint on the buildings might be a little faded, it’s by no means dirty. 

Carrots stops in front of a door and pulls it open, motioning me inside. I pause, dumbfounded, as I step inside the place. The heavy rumble of polished balls on hard wood followed by the sudden crash of them striking pens has me taken aback. I look down at her as she steps beside me then back at the place.

“Really Fluff, bowling?” I’m more than certain that she can hear the surprise in my voice. I can’t help the stupid grin on my face as AC/DC’s Hell’s Bells blares over the speakers.

She nods. “Yep,” she replies, popping the P sound at the end. “This is the oldest bowling alley in the city; still uses the old fashioned machinery as well so it should be safe from….” She waves her paw at me. “It was either this or the movies, and I couldn’t find a theater in the city that hadn’t switched to digital projectors.” 

I smile down at her warmly. “Thank you Fluff.”

“You’re welcome, now come on.” She grabs my paw and pulls me up to a counter. 

The badger attendant looks at us for a moment before reaching under the counter and pulling out two pairs of paw wraps, “Here ya go,” he states before we can ask for anything. “Yer on lane 20; ya pay for the number of games ya play.”

“Thank you!” Judy says happily as she reaches up and grabs the paw wraps. “Come on Nick!” 

I shrug at the attendant and follow Judy down the rows of lanes. We sit down in some faded plaid seats at our designated lane. 

She grins at me. “So have you done this before?” 

I shake my head as I look around. “No I haven't. But it looks like fun.”

We finish putting on our paw wraps and she walks over to a rack of smaller balls. “We’re going to play five pin so just get one of the balls without finger holes.”

“Five pin?”

She nods. “It's perfect for smaller mammals like us since the balls can be smaller and lighter. I’ve tried to play twelve pin before and the balls are almost as big as I am.” 

“So how do we play?” 

“We roll the balls down the lane and see how many pins we can knock down.” I smile at her as she explains, picking up a blue ball she could comfortably fit in her paw. “The pins are worth varying points depending on how hard they are to hit. But we won't worry about that.” 

“Why not?” 

“Because…” She grins up at me and winks. “It won't be fair to you.” She reaches up and grabs my tie and pulls me down until our noses are just inches apart, mischief gleaming brightly in her eyes. “No magic Nick.” 

I grin at her. “I wouldn’t dream of it Fluff.” 

She lets go of my tie and gives me a warm smile as she scratches me under the chin with her blunt claws. “Good boy.” She grins at me as she turns and walks back confidently toward the lane. 

I look over the assorted balls and pick a grey one at random. Judy smirks at me as I walk back over to her. 

“So Slick, you know how to play right?” 

“Really Fluff, how hard can it be to roll a ball down the lane and knock down the pins?”

“Know what that sounds like to me Slick?” The smirk on her face is damn near smug. 

“What's that?”

“Famous last words.”

“Well then Fluff, why don't you give me a demonstration.” 

“Gladly.” She picks up her ball and walks over to the lane. She breathes once, twice, then moves. I honestly try to take her moves in so I can attempt to replicate them. But there’s just too much to it. I think I might have the paw work down, but other than that I know I'm in over my head as I watch the ball curve toward the gutter only to arch back in and knock down all the pins. 

I swallow nervously when she turns and looks at me with a smug grin on her face as the machine behind her resets the pins. “Your turn Slick…” She winks at me as she sits down. “After all, how hard can it be?” 

I pick up my ball and walk over to the lane. _What was it she did again?_

“Well Nick?” Judy’s smug voice comes from behind me.

I shrug before stepping forward and swinging the ball down the lane. It doesn't so much glide onto the floor as much as it thuds onto the lane. I grin as it looks like I still got a decent amount of spin on it as it arcs. My ears splay out as it arcs right into the gutter. 

I sigh and turn, expecting to get some ridicule. But instead she smiles at me. 

“I have to say Nick, I'm kinda impressed.” She smiles, picking up my ball as the machine spits it out, and walks over to me. “A bit more spin and a little smoother on the release and that would have hooked like you wanted it to.” She hands me the ball. “Now come over here.”

I move to stand beside her, looking down at her. 

“Now you see these arrows?” She points to a series of arrows on the lane. “They help you aim.” She moves me to the side a bit. “The middle arrow lines up perfectly with the center of the middle pin.”

I nod, listening.

“Now, if you bend forward a bit…” she tugs on my tie to bend me forward, “…and move your arm like so…” she guides my right paw with the ball back and then forward in a smooth arc, “…and release at the bottom of the arc, you'll get a smoother release and the ball will roll straight. It's easier and more controlled than trying to get a bunch of spin on it.”

I grin as she smiles at me. “Seems simple enough.”

“Ok Slick, go for it.”

I pull my paw back again and bring it forward smoothly letting go of the ball onto the lane. This time instead of a thump there’s the smooth rumble of the ball as it moves down the lane. It strikes the center pin almost perfectly, knocking down four of the five pins. 

“Whoo-hoo!” Judy shouts, giving a little hop of joy. “See!”

I eye that fifth pin ruefully before turning to her. Her exuberance at my small achievement is infectious. The rest of the game and the three that follow she either rolls strikes or knocks down four out of five. I on the other paw alternate between a series of gutter balls or three out of four pins with the odd strike thrown in. Honestly though? I have never had so much fun with another mammal; the simplest bit of praise from her is almost enough to cause my tail to wag uncontrollably.

“That was sooo much fun!” Judy exclaims as we leave the bowling alley. The sun has started to set and the street lights have started to come on. She’s near bouncing with either excitement or nervous energy I'm not sure which. It spills off of her, lifting my spirits as we walk side by side down the street. 

“I had a lot of fun Fluff, thank you.” The grin on my face is easily that of a loon. But you know what? I don’t care. I’m happy; personally I consider the date a success by every measure a mammal could put on it. I’m happy and, if the huge smile on her face is anything to go by, so is she. 

I stuff my paws into my pockets as we walk down the street. The sky is painted in warm pink and orange hues contrasting to the shadows and artificial lights of the city street. There’s still a mild chill to the night air,, signifying that the weather walls haven’t fully gotten everything under control yet. 

“I’m glad that you had a good time.” She steps closer to me as we walk. Her ears flop down her back as she looks up at me before stepping right to my side and hooking her arm through mine. 

I glance down at her in surprise, but she looks straight forward as if this is normal. So I just smile all the more for it and keep walking. It’s…. different having her that close to me. I mean I’m used to closeness with her, having shared the same bed now for over a week, but it's different out in the open. 

A few blocks later I start to turn to head downtown toward her godmother’s apartment only to be stopped by Fluff. I look down at her as she pulls me in the direction my (our?) apartment. 

“Fluff?”

“Olivia said she’d watch Cotton for the evening.” 

I nod as we walk toward the apartment.

“I called my mother today.” There’s a slight hesitation in her voice.

“How did that go?” 

She sighs and looks up at me. “Surprisingly well actually. We talked for a while on my lunch break.”

“And your father?”

“I’m not quite ready for that yet.” Her paw squeezes my forearm. “She asked about you.”

“Oh?” I glance down at her with a raised eyebrow. “What did you tell her.”

“The truth. That I trust you and Cotton adores you.” I relax slightly. “Mom was surprised.”

I try hard to keep from tensing up too much. “Why’s that?”

“I have a history with a fox from grade school….”

“Oh….”

“Looking back on it, that’s a large part of what caused Cotton and I to leave.”

“That you had history with a fox?”

“He was a jerk that just happened to be a fox, but to be fair I wasn’t much better.” We turn into the alley toward our door.

“What happened?” 

“He and I actually went back and forth a few times, but it really came to a head at the annual Carrot Days Festival.” She pauses as I dig my keys out of my pocket and open the door. “My friends and I did a skit about what we wanted to be when we grew up. That’s where I announced to the whole town that I wanted to be a police officer.”

I grin. “I would’ve paid to see that….”

Judy rolls her eyes at me as we settle onto the couch. “After the skit my parents were less than pleased with my dream to go into law enforcement. They wanted me to settle and, I quote, ‘…settle hard, raise kits, and be a farmer or a farmer's wife.’”

“I can’t see you doing that.”

She snorts. “Thanks. Anyway, I happened to see Gideon and his friend Travis follow some of my friends after they’d won pawfuls of tickets at some games. I just knew they were up to no good and slipped away from my parents as they went on their sermon.”

I look down at her as she tells me the story.

“I found him cornering my friends and stealing their tickets. I told him to give them back; one thing led to another and we got into a fight.” She wrung her paws in front of her. “I mean, kits get into fights all the time and it’s not usually that big of a deal…”

“But?”

She takes a deep breath. “He clawed me.” 

I stare down at her in disbelief. 

“He got into so much trouble. I found out later that Kit Protective Services got involved; he was removed from his home and forced into therapy and a bunch of other stuff.” She swallowed nervously. “Very few cared about my involvement, and at the time I was just happy I didn't get in trouble for fighting.” 

I look down at my paws.

“Later I realized I was just as much to blame for that fight as he was. Yes he made the choice to do what he did, but we’d been pushing each other’s buttons for so long that it became kinda inevitable.” She sighs. “It was just after I got accepted to the academy he came to the family farm. We apologized to each other and he told me that he hoped to go into a business partnership with my family, as he needed produce for his bakery.” She looks up at me. “My father would have none of it. Even after I tried to explain everything to him.” She looks down. “I was about to go into the academy and become a police officer. I wanted to be the kind that helped everyone regardless of what they happen to look like.”

I nod. “So that's when you took Cotton and left.”

She nods. “Yeah. So Mom was surprised when I told her about us living with you, as my sister had already told her about us going to the IHOP.” 

“I can understand that….. All things considered Fluff, I'm a little surprised that you’re here too.”

She looks up at me, determination bright in her eyes as she moves to straddle my lap. “Why? You won’t hurt me, and you won’t hurt Cotton.”

I swallow nervously, our noses are just inches apart. “I’m not afraid of you….”


	11. Epilogue

# Epilogue

So that’s it, that's what happened on the weather wall. That’s how the Great Blizzard of 2016 happened. 

Judy has been on parking duty this last week and, well, I’ve been at home working on controlling the influence of my magic. I just feel grateful at the moment to still have my job after the whole thing, as I’ve kinda gotten used to regular meals. On the down side though, I think Buffalo Butt is going to keep Fluff on parking duty for another week. 

Of course you want to know what happened between Judy and I… Not much really, and honestly I'm not the kind to share those kind of details. I respect my girlfriend too much for that. 

Oh crap look at the time, I gotta go pick up Cotton… Chow

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well uh yeah wow look that just happened…..  
> Did something happen? Well yeah.  
> But….no, no I won't tell you what it was yet, other than to say it wasn’t lemony. My long time readers should know I have no problem going lemony flavored when it suits me. But this time wasn't it.  
> But it would be embarrassing to Nick… Will you find out? Yes, yes you will. I just haven't figured out yet if that reveal will happen as a part of the mainline story or if it will be told in a Side Hustle.  
> The next update will be A Wizard’s Path Prologue and Chapter 1….. Expect that release on 3 April.  
> Man 3 double posts in a row…..  
> Which brings to a last point I want to make. Look guys let me be real for one second here. I have dropped updates even when my personal life has been somewhat crushing. The current world situation will not change that. SO unless something drastic happens, like huge amounts of human stupidity or an act of whatever deity you believe in, I will continue to drop a chapter every two weeks. But I ask you guys my awesome readers to please, stay safe, stay sane but above all stay compassionate.
> 
> Thank you and see you guys again in two weeks.
> 
> LordKraus
> 
> One last note: I truly cant do this with out my team. They all know who they are and they are all very much so appreciated.


End file.
